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Decentralized Democracy

House Hansard - 98

44th Parl. 1st Sess.
September 20, 2022 10:00AM
Context: House Hansard - 98 - Sep/20/22
Mr. Terry Beech (Parliamentary Secretary to the Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Finance, Lib.)
  • Sep/20/22 7:04:43 p.m.
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Madam Speaker, I am very happy to be here to discuss this topic, and I thank the member opposite for raising it. Canadians are seeing higher inflation rates and higher costs of living in Canada and, frankly, right around the world as the result of many factors, which include the war in Ukraine, global supply chain bottlenecks and global energy market uncertainty. Despite these challenges, Canada's rate of inflation continues to be well below that of the G7, the United States and the OECD. I would like to remind my colleague across the aisle that our lower rate is in part due to the measures taken by our government, including in budget 2022, which put forward targeted measures to ensure that key expenses like housing, child care and dental care would be more affordable for more Canadians. Prior to that, we lowered taxes for the middle class on two occasions, tax decreases that the member and her party voted against. While we could not foresee a global pandemic or a war in Europe, when it comes to the finances of our country, Canadians can rest assured that our net debt to GDP is the lowest in the G7 and we have improved our relative position over the course of the pandemic. Our government is fully aware that Canadians are feeling the effects of elevated inflation, particularly at the gas pumps and in grocery stores, but we also understand that inflation is a global phenomenon, driven in large part by the lasting impacts of a once-in-several-generations pandemic and, of course, Russia's illegal invasion of Ukraine. While this is not a unique Canadian problem, we have a good plan to make life more affordable, especially for those Canadians who need it the most. Our affordability plan includes a suite of measures totalling $12.1 billion in new support for 2022. We have enhanced the Canada workers benefit, which now supports an estimated three million low-income workers. We have increased OAS for seniors 75 years and older by 10%, starting in July 2022. By the end of this year, we will be cutting child care fees in half. That will deliver thousands of dollars for Canadian families while investing in their children and allowing more parents to get back to work. In addition, earlier today our government introduced legislation to implement new dental, housing and GST credit affordability measures that are also part of our affordability plan. Now the new Conservative leader, and I congratulate him on his new position, said that today's announcement prints cash. That is a quote. Let us be absolutely clear. These two pieces of legislation provide targeted relief for the middle-class Canadians who need it the most. He says this is inflationary spending. Multiple economists, including our former deputy parliamentary budget officer and the University of Calgary's Lindsay Tedds, have pointed out that these supports for Canadians are not inflationary. The Conservative leader's solution to help with the cost of living is to make cuts to government programs without telling us what he would cut. He has also encouraged Canadians to invest in speculative assets. Sadly some Canadians listened to the Leader of the Opposition and have since lost their life savings as a result. A more responsible approach to governance and more responsible approach to solving the affordability challenges of Canadians is required. Our government is continuing to focus on making life more affordable, and we are continuing to focus on making an economy that works for all Canadians.
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Context: House Hansard - 98 - Sep/20/22
Mr. Terry Beech
  • Sep/20/22 7:09:26 p.m.
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Madam Speaker, that is not the first time a Conservative has risen in this House to say that we were spending too much and not enough in the same sentence. By doubling the GST credit for six months, we would provide $2.5 billion in additional targeted support to the roughly 11 million individuals and families who need it the most. This includes about half of Canadian families with children and more than half of Canadian seniors. We are also creating the Canada dental benefit. I think we could both agree that it is important that kids can get their teeth fixed, and that there are affordability and economic benefits as well. We are providing a new one-time top-up to the Canada housing benefit, which would deliver a $500 payment to 1.8 million struggling renters, effectively doubling the commitment we made in budget 2022. Our government is focused on providing real solutions to make life more affordable. I look forward to working with the member opposite to find more ways to work together to make life more affordable for Canadian families.
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