44th Parl. 1st Sess.
September 23, 2022 10:00AM
Mr. Speaker, a constituent of mine, Ted, is a senior. He lost his teeth. He cannot get dental care coverage. I raised this in the House and someone from the member's party suggested that Ted should go back to work. He is 77. He should not have to go back to work to get his teeth fixed, and he should not have to eat soup all the time.
The member talked about payroll taxes. CPP is not a tax. It is retirement income; it is deferred wages. It is critical. We are hearing from seniors who have not saved. They need help with dental care. They need to make sure they can retire with more income.
Conservative premiers, and premiers right across this country, worked out a deal with the government to increase CPP, and that is for both workers' contributions and those of their employers, so that seniors can have enough money to get the things they need.
Does my colleague not agree that investments in CPP are deferred wages and are meant for retirement income? They are not payroll taxes.
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Mr. Speaker, first, I will address the comments the member made about the senior in his riding. I hear stories like that as well. Seniors are among some of the hardest hit, because they are on fixed incomes. As this inflation continues to be at record levels, they, as I mentioned in my intervention with examples, are some of the hardest hit, because they are not able to have more income. That is the first thing.
The second thing, regarding people's paycheques, is that what the CPP and EI increases will do is reduce the paycheques they are taking home. It is also going to be more costly for businesses. A time like this, when we have record-breaking inflation, is not the time to be increasing any costs on people.
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- Sep/23/22 11:15:24 a.m.
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Mr. Speaker, it has become almost impossible for many in my riding to keep up with rising costs. Right now in Nanaimo—Ladysmith, the demand for urgent assistance for seniors at risk of homelessness is increasing at an alarming rate.
The SHINE program at the Nanaimo Family Life Association sees approximately five referrals for seniors who are homeless or at immediate risk. This is per week. These referrals are only a glimpse into the hardships. Stigmatization, blame and barriers make it difficult to access help.
Seniors contribute to our communities in endless ways, but instead of being treated with the respect they deserve, they are being left without the most basic necessities such as a place to call home.
When will the Liberals stop propping up wealthy investors and CEOs who treat housing as a commodity? Housing is a basic human right and needs to be treated as such. Seniors deserve better.
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- Sep/23/22 11:36:33 a.m.
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Mr. Speaker, we are working hard to strengthen the Canadian pension plan. The Conservatives are trying to argue that we can make life more affordable by raiding the pension benefits of seniors in the future. It is basically the same playbook they used when they tried to raise the retirement age from 65 to 67.
Why the opposition wants to deprive Canadians of their retirement security when they need it most is beyond me, but I can say that it is very troubling public policy.
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- Sep/23/22 11:43:05 a.m.
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Mr. Speaker, we recognize the challenges seniors are facing, and our government has been there for them.
Now, to help seniors who are struggling, we are doubling the GST tax credit. That means seniors will receive $700 back in their pockets. Nearly two million low-income renters who are struggling with their rent will receive $500. We also increased the old age security for seniors aged 75 by 10%. For seniors, for a full pensioner, that means $800 in their pocket.
While the Conservatives oppose every affordability measure, we will remain focused on delivering for seniors.
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- Sep/23/22 11:45:19 a.m.
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Mr. Speaker, as someone who has walked in parades of World War II and World War I veterans, and who understands the true commitment of our veterans and the commitment of the minister responsible for veterans to seniors, I can assure the member that this is a file that is in fact being reviewed and looked at. We are not in a position where we will talk about individual cases on the floor of the House of Commons.
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- Sep/23/22 12:03:27 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, we are helping Canadians by making life more affordable. We are doing that in many ways. It is why we have increased the Canada workers benefit, which now helps three million Canadians. We have reduced the retirement age from 67 to 65, putting thousands of dollars back into the pockets of our seniors. We have saved students $3,000 by getting rid of interest rates on student loans.
We will continue to build an economy that works for everyone, and I look forward to working with the member to do the same.
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