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Decentralized Democracy

House Hansard - 120

44th Parl. 1st Sess.
October 28, 2022 10:00AM
  • Oct/28/22 11:24:16 a.m.
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Mr. Speaker, talking about people who cannot afford to put food on the table at the end of the month and those who will have to pay an additional $800 a month for their mortgage payment is not a gimmick. It is the reality that Canadians are facing right now because the government spent billions of dollars. That created inflation and increased interest rates. Because of that, now all Canadians are struggling. How many families will go bankrupt because of this NDP-Liberal coalition's dubious policies?
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  • Oct/28/22 11:24:54 a.m.
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Mr. Speaker, less than 12 hours ago, the Conservatives voted against measures to put money directly into Canadians' pockets. The Conservatives' economic plan involves raiding our pensions and attacking the country's EI system. The Conservatives do not care about Canadians' interests.
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  • Oct/28/22 11:25:25 a.m.
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Mr. Speaker, not once since the start of question period has the parliamentary secretary answered the question asked of her. How many families will have to declare bankruptcy at the end of the month because of the NDP-Liberal coalition's inflationary policies? An average Montreal family servicing a $500,000 loan will not be able to pay the mortgage at the end of the month, because that loan will cost an extra $800 per month. How many families will have to hand over the keys to their home because of the government's financial incompetence?
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  • Oct/28/22 11:26:09 a.m.
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Mr. Speaker, when we brought our proposal before the House to cut taxes for middle-class families, the Conservatives voted against it. When we introduced the Canada child benefit, which puts over $13,000 in the pocket of a single mother in Canada, the Conservatives voted against it. Yesterday evening, the Conservatives voted against additional measures to help Canadian households. The Conservatives need to take a good, hard look in the mirror and admit that they do not have Canadians' interests at heart.
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  • Oct/28/22 11:26:45 a.m.
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Mr. Speaker, it is another day at the Public Order Emergency Commission in Ottawa, and there is new proof that the police never wanted the act to be invoked. An exchange of text messages between the RCMP commissioner and her OPP counterpart reveals that, on February 5, the police became wary of the federal government's intentions. This is what the RCMP commissioner said about the Emergencies Act: “Not something I want.” Why did the government invoke the most extreme of Canadian laws against the wishes of the RCMP?
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  • Oct/28/22 11:27:24 a.m.
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Mr. Speaker, we decided to invoke the Emergencies Act because it was needed to ensure the safety and health of Canadians. The testimony given before Justice Rouleau has shown that there were a lot of challenges and disruptions on the streets that were affecting workers, families and vulnerable citizens. That is why we invoked the Emergencies Act and we are now working with the commission.
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  • Oct/28/22 11:27:52 a.m.
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Mr. Speaker, the commissioner's text messages also reveal that in the first week of the occupation of Ottawa, on February 5, the federal government was considering invoking the Emergencies Act. February 5 was prior to the blockade of the Ambassador Bridge in Windsor, which began on February 7. When the federal government claims that it resorted to emergency measures because the crisis was national in scope, that is untrue. The Emergencies Act has never been invoked because it is supposed to be the last resort. Why did the government use it as a first resort and against the advice of the police?
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  • Oct/28/22 11:28:37 a.m.
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Mr. Speaker, with all due respect to my colleague, the decision to invoke the Emergencies Act was a last resort. Testimony before the commission has shown that the situation, including the events at the Ambassador Bridge in Windsor, had very serious negative impacts on workers, families and vulnerable citizens. On the advice of law enforcement, we invoked the Emergencies Act because it was an unprecedented situation and it was necessary to do so.
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  • Oct/28/22 11:29:19 a.m.
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Mr. Speaker, Conservative premier Danielle Smith is once again attacking public health care in Alberta, stating that she will pull Alberta out of federal programs that she does not like. She is pushing an American-style private health care system, a system that will not help anyone but the wealthy—
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  • Oct/28/22 11:29:34 a.m.
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I am wondering about the relevance of the question with regard to public administration. I will allow the member to rephrase it as something that has to do with Government Orders.
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  • Oct/28/22 11:29:47 a.m.
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Mr. Speaker, Conservative premier Danielle Smith is yet again threatening Alberta's public health care system, stating that she will pull Alberta out of federal programs she does not like, federal programs like the Canada Health Act. To make matters worse, the federal government is doing nothing to stand up for Canadians' fundamental right to health care. When is the government going to step up and protect Albertans from Conservative attacks on our universally accessible, publicly delivered health care system?
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  • Oct/28/22 11:30:25 a.m.
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Mr. Speaker, I join with the member in believing that our publicly funded, cherished health care system is part of the identity of being Canadian. The Canada Health Act is very clear. There are five provisions that have to be seen in order to have a transfer. I hope that the Alberta premier will listen to us when we meet in two weeks in Vancouver, and her colleagues will let her know how important the Canada Health Act is to all Canadians.
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  • Oct/28/22 11:31:08 a.m.
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Mr. Speaker, under the Harper government, the cost of buying a home increased by 77%. It doubled under the Liberals. The average rent in Canada is now over $2,000 a month. Families just cannot afford it. Both the Conservatives and the Liberals allowed for the financialization of housing to go unchecked, treating housing as a stock market instead of a necessity by allowing corporate landlords to evict people from their homes to turn a profit. Canadians deserve to find a home they can afford. Will the Liberals stand with Canadian families and put a stop to the profiteering of housing?
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  • Oct/28/22 11:31:56 a.m.
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Mr. Speaker, I thank my colleague for her question. There is definitely a speculative element in the real estate market right now. That is why our government decided to implement an annual tax of 1% on the value of residential property owned by non-resident non-Canadians and to prohibit foreign investment for two years. We want to make sure we protect our market here in Canada.
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  • Oct/28/22 11:32:25 a.m.
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Mr. Speaker, 1.47 million is the number of Canadians who accessed food banks in one month. It is the highest number in history ever. One in three of those users are children. What is the Liberals' plan for relief? More tax. They want to triple the carbon tax on groceries, triple the carbon tax on home heating and triple the carbon tax on gas. Will they commit to ending their triple carbon tax increase or do they want more Canadians using food banks?
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  • Oct/28/22 11:33:00 a.m.
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Mr. Speaker, I would like to thank my colleague for raising a very important issue. This is a matter that should concern every member of this House and all Canadians. As she said, the fact that families are struggling to feed not only their families but also kids is something that is of concern to all of us. That is why, back in May, I asked the Competition Bureau to look at the issue we are seeing around competition in the country. More recently I asked it to launch an investigation to make sure there are no unlawful practices. In addition to that, I spoke with a number of CEOs around the country to make sure they do their part in lowering prices for Canadians.
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  • Oct/28/22 11:33:37 a.m.
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Mr. Speaker, I appreciate the member's attempt to answer the question, but that is not an answer for why we have a trillion-dollar debt. It is not an answer when we have an increasing carbon tax and four million Canadians rely on propane and oil to heat their homes. This is not a luxury; this is a necessity. The average family is going to pay $7,000 to heat their home this winter. They have to choose between heating and eating. Again, will the Liberals finally show leadership, fiscal responsibility and compassion and stop the tripling of their carbon tax?
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  • Oct/28/22 11:34:14 a.m.
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Mr. Speaker, I would like to quote from an article that the new director of communications for the Conservative Party of Canada wrote. He stated, “But opposition to a policy is not a policy in and of itself.” He added, “Conservatives are refusing to contribute anything to the [climate change] discussion other than throwing temper tantrums and scoring political points.” I agree with the new director of communications for the Conservative Party of Canada.
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  • Oct/28/22 11:34:48 a.m.
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Mr. Speaker, the NDP-Liberal coalition has racked up over $500 billion in inflation-causing deficits, turning essentials like heating our homes and eating healthy food into luxuries. Just as Canadians are starting to pay high, skyrocketing prices to fuel their homes, skyrocketing visits to food banks are happening in Canada as well. When will this costly coalition stop hurting Canadians and cancel their inflationary spending?
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  • Oct/28/22 11:35:19 a.m.
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Mr. Speaker, we would all agree that our colleague is bringing forth an important issue. We are all seized with the fact that the price of food in this country has been increasing. That is why we took action. Earlier this year, I asked the Competition Bureau to look at whether there have been any unlawful practices in this country. More recently, I demanded that it start an investigation to make sure that we monitor what is going on in the market. What matters to Canadians is that we took action. I spoke to the CEOs of the large grocery chains in this country to make sure they lower prices for Canadians, because this is a matter in which everyone should do their part to lower prices for families.
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