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Feb/7/23 10:18:32 a.m.
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Madam Speaker, the only thing that outdid that applause was when the member said he was splitting his time with somebody else, which goes to show how trained the seals are. In any event, my question to the member is this: In 150 days, why has he not given a single idea to Canadians on what his plan would be for the environment?

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Hon. Pierre Poilievre

Feb/7/23 10:19:57 a.m.
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Madam Speaker, I want to thank the member for acknowledging the 150-day mark of my leadership. I am just disappointed he did not get me a nice present to honour the occasion. Maybe that question was the present. He often lobs me these softballs across the way. The member wants some ideas. Here are some ideas: Why do we not use technology instead of taxes to fight climate change? Why do we not support our energy sector in pumping the carbon back into the ground through carbon capture and storage? Why do we not speed up nuclear power so that we can have more emissions-free electricity on our grid? Why do we not get out of the way of the people of Quebec and speed up the approval of future hydroelectric dams so they can produce even more prodigious emissions-free electricity? There are some ideas that would actually protect our environment and our customers.

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Ms. Monique Pauzé (Repentigny, BQ)

Feb/7/23 10:20:38 a.m.
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Madam Speaker, I want to point out that this is the fifth out of eight supply days that the Conservatives have used to talk about the carbon tax. Every time, the Conservatives' solutions involve depriving the government of revenue. They are not presenting solutions that would help increase household income. They are not presenting solutions that would have big businesses pay their fair share of taxes. They are also not presenting solutions that would have banks and multinationals decrease their profit margins at a time when citizens are making sacrifices. There is nothing in today's Conservative motion to address the sources of inflation. On the contrary, it gives a gift to oil companies.

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Hon. Pierre Poilievre

Feb/7/23 10:20:41 a.m.
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Madam Speaker, first, the member is wrong. She says that we have not come up with any proposals to abolish unjustifiable corporate profits. In fact, yesterday, we moved a motion in the House of Commons to take away McKinsey's unjustifiable profits. We said no to the big contracts the Liberal government awards to major corporations and the contracts worth $1,500 a day, or even an hour. We are the ones going after the subsidies to Liberal businesses that profit from Liberal gifts. What is more, the Bloc Québécois is in favour of these gifts. We want to lower taxes that are weighing heavy on ordinary Canadians, but we do not want to lower them for Liberal businesses.

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Ms. Bonita Zarrillo (Port Moody—Coquitlam, NDP)

Feb/7/23 10:21:49 a.m.
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Madam Speaker, this morning I had representatives from CLC in my office talking about the just transition and talking about the need to make sure there are workers at the table for these conversations. They are worried about climate change. They are worried about climate change for the sake of their children and grandchildren. Can the member expand on the impacts of climate change and tell us what he is hearing across the country?

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Hon. Pierre Poilievre

Feb/7/23 10:22:18 a.m.
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Madam Speaker, what I am hearing is that the NDP-Liberal plan to triple, triple, triple the carbon tax will do nothing to fight climate change. The NDP has nothing to say about workers. It has abandoned workers. The NDP members believe that the greedy government, of which they are a part, should have more of workers' paycheques. There was a time, way back in the day, when the NDP actually fought for working people. Now they fight for big government and special interests in Ottawa. They have abandoned and are now attacking the working people by raising their home heating bills, raising their gas bills, raising their grocery bills and raising their taxes so the government, the bureaucracy, the special interests in Ottawa, the McKinseys of the world who get these juicy contracts, for which the NDP voted, get more and the working people get less. We believe exactly the opposite.

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Mr. Jasraj Singh Hallan (Calgary Forest Lawn, CPC)

Feb/7/23 10:23:13 a.m.
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Madam Speaker, after eight long years of the current Liberal government's economic mismanagement, Canadians are paying the price. The Liberals' reckless government spending, coupled with their love of taxes, has caused this inflation crisis. Their failed policies have left this country with a 40-year high inflation, interest rates not seen since the 2008 recession, and continually rising taxes that seem to end up in the hands of wealthy Liberal insiders or sent out the door in inflationary spending. Worst of all, the government is going to triple, triple, triple the destructive carbon tax and add a second one on top of it. The reckless spending by the current government started even before the COVID–19 pandemic. The Prime Minister's promise of $10 billion was broken when, even before the pandemic, he had already spent $100 billion. After telling Canadians he would have only modest deficits, he broke that promise completely. Of course, during COVID, the current government kept the money printers going, adding half a trillion dollars to the national debt, and 40% of that spending was not even pandemic-related. Former finance minister and random Liberal Bill Morneau has admitted that the government overspent during the pandemic. Lucrative government contracts have gone to companies like SNC-Lavalin, WE Charity and the company run by former Liberal MP Frank Baylis. Of course, Canadians got nothing out of those contracts in all those cases, but the Prime Minister's friends were happily paid off and it cost Canadians. The Auditor General has even reported that $32 billion went to people who should not have received COVID benefits, including prisoners, dead people and even foreign nationals. It seems the Prime Minister ranks Canadians lower than even criminals. Who can forget the $54 million spent on the ArriveCAN app, which failed to do anything but wrongly send vaccinated Canadians into government-run quarantine centres? What is worse is that the Liberals thought they should add $15 billion a year in spending on contracts that go out to high-priced consultants who have personal connections to cabinet ministers and even the Prime Minister. As the Parliamentary Budget Officer once said, this is not “keeping one's powder dry”. The Governor of the Bank of Canada, Tiff Macklem, has said that inflation is a homegrown issue. He admitted to the finance committee that the current Liberal government's out-of-control spending drove up the inflation that plagues Canadians today. He even indicated that the eight consecutive interest rate hikes were necessary because the Liberals cannot help but spend, spend, spend. The former Bank of Canada governor and future Liberal leadership candidate Mark Carney told senators that inflation is a domestic problem. Former Liberal deputy prime minister and finance minister John Manley said that the Liberal spending is working against the efforts of the Bank of Canada to control inflation. He added that Liberal spending is fuelling inflation. Inflation has also been fuelled by the current Liberal government's adding tax increases after tax increases. There is the triple, triple, tripling of the carbon tax, the new, second carbon tax coming this year, the payroll tax and the undemocratic escalator tax on the drinks Canadians enjoy. When asked by Conservatives, the Bank of Canada governor admitted that the failed carbon tax is driving up inflation. It is not hard to see why. While inflation caused by Liberal spending has made everything more expensive, the Liberals' carbon tax is punishing Canadians, businesses and farmers for living their lives. Agriculture producers are dealing with higher prices for farm fuels, fertilizers needed to grow crops, and the feed they need to keep livestock alive. We know that, once tripled, the failed carbon tax will cost a typical farmer $150,000 a year, and the agriculture industry could lose upwards of $50 million on fertilizer emissions costs. The price of natural gas will jump as the tripling carbon tax adds about 30¢ per litre. Businesses are taking on the higher costs of buying goods, paying for transportation and paying for refrigeration and storage. If farmers and businesses want to survive in the Prime Minister's Canada, they have to raise their prices. At the end of the day, they still need to pay their employees, pay the rent and pay for the Liberal tax increases. When producers making the goods are forced to pay more, it costs more for businesses to buy, transport and store goods, so it is not rocket science to see that it costs Canadians more to pay for the gas, groceries and home heating they need to survive in Canada. It is that cost of living that is the issue. One in five Canadians is out of money. They are skipping meals or accessing charity services just to meet their basic needs; 60% of Canadians are cutting back on groceries, while 41% are looking for cheaper, less nutritious options. The average rent for a two-bedroom apartment across Canada's 10 big cities is over $2,000 a month, compared to $1,171 a month in 2015. That is an almost 90% increase in rent. The average homeowner's mortgage payments have more than doubled since 2015, going from about $1,500 to more than $3,000 a month. Inflation on the interest on mortgages is up 18% year over year. It takes 60% to 70% of Canadians' paycheques to pay the mortgage, while inflation and the cost of living eat up the rest. As we see skyrocketing home heating prices, due to the Liberal government cancelling good, clean energy projects that could have been made here in Canada, we also see that the carbon tax takes up about 18% to 20% of everyday Canadians' home heating bills. When Liberals triple, triple, triple the carbon tax, it would take anywhere from 40% to 60% of the bill alone, just on carbon tax. Eighty per cent of variable rate mortgages have now hit the point where their mortgage payment is entirely just interest. The bank is forcing Canadians to pay more to pay down the principal part of their mortgage, and 45% of those homeowners on a variable rate mortgage will have to sell their homes in nine months. People living in one of the hot housing markets, like Ontario, could lose 30% on the sale of their house if they bought it in the last 12 months. This carbon tax is a complete failure. It has failed to reach the Liberal emissions targets. In fact, Canada ranks 58th out of 63 countries in climate change performance. We rank lower than China and the U.S., and just barely perform better than Russia. It is clear the Liberal carbon tax is not an environmental plan; it is a tax plan. If Canada is to succeed on the environment and in our economy, government needs to get out of the way, incentivize businesses and let them thrive. For decades, the private sector has been the innovators and developers of the technology that drives our economy forward. The right approach to addressing climate change is through technology and innovation, not tax. Liberals have crushed the entrepreneurial and innovative spirit and have even driven away investment. Since 2015, Canada has only seen a decline in investors wanting to bring their money to invest in our world-class businesses and industries, because of uncertainty caused by out-of-control Liberal spending, inflation and taxation. We need to restore affordability and confidence to the Canadian economy. To do that, government is not, and will not be, the solution. Instead, it is time to fire the gatekeepers, cut the red tape and end the punishing tax burden on Canadians. Canadian workers and businesses are ready to get this economy back on track, restore good paycheques for our workers and reverse the damage caused by the Liberal government. On this side, we know that the only way out of this affordability crisis is to stop the crazy government spending and instead make more of what money buys: affordable homes, affordable Canadian food and affordable, responsibly sourced Canadian energy. At a time of crisis for Canadians, Conservatives and our Conservative leader are listening and ready to act. Canadians are ready too, but they need to get the government out of the way. It is time to end the inflationary spending spree, end the cushy Liberal contracts and stop the tax increases. It is time to axe this failed carbon tax and let Canadians keep more in their pockets.

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Ms. Leah Taylor Roy (Aurora—Oak Ridges—Richmond Hill, Lib.)

Feb/7/23 10:32:28 a.m.
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Madam Speaker, I would like to ask a question about the price on pollution. We agree that the challenges facing Canadians right now are significant. You have well explained the increases in fuel prices over the last few months. However, there has been no increase in the price on pollution in that period. You are continually blaming it on the price on pollution, which is actually giving back more to most people than we are levying. Could you explain why these prices have been going up over the last few months, even though there has been no increase in the price on pollution, and why you continue—

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The Assistant Deputy Speaker (Mrs. Alexandra Mendès)

Feb/7/23 10:33:17 a.m.
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Before I give the floor to the hon. member for Calgary Forest Lawn, I would just remind the hon. member that she should speak to the Chair. I have not spoken about anything. The hon. member for Calgary Forest Lawn.

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Mr. Jasraj Singh Hallan

Feb/7/23 10:33:29 a.m.
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Madam Speaker, if someone wants to send a page over here, I can give the member a report by their own public budget officer that proves that more Canadians do not get money back in their pockets. They actually get more taken out of their pockets. The pain that the member is talking about is caused by her government. The out-of-control spending has caused this inflationary crisis, which was proven by random Liberals, previous and current ones. This inflationary crisis was caused by their government. On top of that, the Liberals pile-drive Canadians with more taxes and with more carbon tax. They need to axe the tax and let Canadians keep more money in their pockets.

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Mr. Martin Champoux (Drummond, BQ)

Feb/7/23 10:34:10 a.m.
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Madam Speaker, first of all, I would like to give my colleague a bit of advice. I have a few years of experience in marketing, and it is common knowledge that when a slogan is no good, it does nothing for the cause. For francophones in Quebec, “triple, triple, triple” is kind of the equivalent of “Oui, papa” or “Pop-Sac-À-Vie-Sau-Sec-Fi-Co-Pin”, or even “Je n'aurais jamais assez de Sugar-Crisp”. At some point, if the slogan is not working, it is time to get a new one. The motion the Conservatives are moving today is against the carbon tax. In Quebec, we do not have the carbon tax, it does not apply. Instead we take part in the carbon exchange. Quebeckers, however, are currently under the same economic pressure. Inflation is hurting Quebec families as well. Clearly, the problem is not just the carbon tax. What I see in the Conservative motion today is the cancellation of the carbon tax, but I am not seeing any solutions to help Quebec and Canadian families. I would like my colleague's thoughts on that.

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Mr. Jasraj Singh Hallan

Feb/7/23 10:35:11 a.m.
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Madam Speaker, the member actually highlights how effective the slogan is. He repeated it twice, so I thank him for doing that. When it comes to what the Conservatives are proposing, which is to cut the carbon tax, not only would it help Quebec, Quebeckers, Quebec businesses, the people of Quebec and the farmers, but it would help everyone. It would help all Canadians across this country to lower their costs. It is just too bad that the Bloc continuously helps to prop up the government and make things more expensive in this country. The Bloc members need to stand with Conservatives and with Canadians, cut the tax, axe the carbon tax and help Canadians keep more in their pockets.

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Ms. Bonita Zarrillo (Port Moody—Coquitlam, NDP)

Feb/7/23 10:35:57 a.m.
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Madam Speaker, I am not sure about the member, but in the riding of Port Moody—Coquitlam, the two highest impacts on people's budgets are housing and child care. The NDP has a solution on child care, and it also has a solution on housing. What I do not see is the Conservative Party supporting initiatives around child care to make it more affordable, and it certainly has fuelled the market lens and the market-driven housing problem that we have in this country. If we are talking today about affordability, are the Conservatives going to support the child care bill? What more can be done to make more affordable housing in this country?

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Mr. Jasraj Singh Hallan

Feb/7/23 10:36:37 a.m.
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Madam Speaker, the Conservatives did support the child care motion that was passed in the House just recently. The problem is that the Liberal Party and the NDP ideologies do not match up with everyday Canadians' with respect to choice, freedom and letting people keep more in their pockets so they can make their own choices and thrive in this country. I come from the home-building industry. We see that the problem today is the supply of homes. There are just not enough. There is too much red tape, and the government is not helping. It needs to get out of the way. It needs to stop being a gatekeeper and let more homes be built here in this country. In the meantime, the Liberals need to help lower the taxes on Canadians so that Canadians can actually have a chance. There are many people here who cannot afford to put away dollar for dollar and save up to have a down payment for a home today, yet the Liberal-NDP government continues to take more out of the pockets—

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The Assistant Deputy Speaker (Mrs. Alexandra Mendès)

Feb/7/23 10:37:36 a.m.
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Resuming debate, the hon. Minister of Environment and Climate Change.

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Hon. Steven Guilbeault (Minister of Environment and Climate Change, Lib.)

Feb/7/23 10:37:43 a.m.
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Madam Speaker, I will be sharing my time with the member for Winnipeg South. I am pleased to take part in today's debate. I would like to say that the Conservatives introduced an opposition day motion to talk about the importance of fighting climate change, but they are not quite there yet. The Conservative Party has had a new leader for 150 days already and yet it still does not have a plan to tackle climate change. It is anybody's guess as to when its plan will be ready. Last time, it took the Conservative Party nearly a year after choosing its previous leader to come up with a plan to fight climate change. As many members know already, Canada has committed to reducing greenhouse gas emissions by 40% to 45% below 2005 levels by 2030 and to achieving net-zero emissions by 2050. Our 2030 emissions reduction plan tabled last March lays out how we will get there. Pollution pricing is the backbone of our climate strategy. It is foundational, because it has been proven to work all over the world, not only to drive down carbon emissions but also to raise innovation and energy efficiency, and to create jobs in the emerging green economy. It also supports and amplifies every other climate measure, and creates an incentive to invest in low-carbon solutions across the economy. Conservatives used to know this. In fact, carbon pricing is the kind of market-based mechanism that earlier generations of fiscal Conservative thinkers used to embrace. Many in the Conservative Party, including the Leader of the Opposition's own communication director, used to support carbon pricing, or at least he did until he started working for the Conservative Party. Today's Conservatives are penny-wise and pound foolish. They have been fighting climate action for years in Canada. Today we face literally billions of dollars in cleanup and adaptation costs from extreme weather events that are stronger and more frequent because of climate change. The fact is that carbon pricing is central to our climate plan, because it is the most efficient and lowest-cost policy to reduce greenhouse gas pollution, and the cost of doing nothing is staggering. When we introduced carbon pricing in 2019, we were not only putting a price on pollution, but we were also putting in place the building blocks for the future we know we need for ourselves, for our kids and for our grandkids. Our approach has always been based on a set of ambitious but realistic standards for carbon pricing, the federal reference that gives the provinces and territories the flexibility to implement their own carbon pricing system. Setting the trajectory until 2030 provides certainty for Canadians and the investor community and will be transformative by creating incentives for the new technologies we need, for both our industry and society. We have just come to an agreement with all the provinces and territories on increasing carbon pricing. I will reiterate that we negotiated a more ambitious price on pollution with each province and all the territories for the coming years. I want to impress on the House just how foundational this price trajectory is to the success of Canadians' low-carbon economy and the jobs that will come with it. Last fall, at COP27 in Egypt, I spoke with Brian Vaasjo of Capital Power, one of Canada's largest private sector electricity producers. Brian told me that pricing pollution and providing certainty and long-term predictability in pricing are key to unlocking investment on some very good projects, including a $2-billion carbon capture electricity project that would not go ahead without it. Susannah Pierce, president and country chair at Shell Canada, noted that Shell's big investment will not make sense without carbon pricing in Canada, and that regulatory certainty is the key to good business decisions. The Conservatives have now abandoned the energy investors and energy companies, but they are pretending to be on the side of those facing energy poverty. Canadians have been riding the roller coaster of volatile global oil and gas prices for years, and Conservatives said nothing about skyrocketing profit margins from oil and gas producers. Instead, they make up a lot of misleading claims about the price on pollution. Here are the facts. About two-thirds of the increase in what Canadians are paying at the pump is due to crude oil prices going up, largely because of Russia's brutal invasion of Ukraine. Another 25% of the price is the result of everything from provincial taxes to refining margins, which have increased by more than 110% in the last two years. That means, all told, 95% of the price of gas has nothing to do with the price on pollution. In fact, the price on pollution puts more money back in the pockets of Canadians, and it remains one of the best ways to fight climate change and keep our air clean. Stakeholders across the country have told us that consistency and predictability are essential to promote investment in a low-carbon economy. We also know that businesses and industries are developing innovative technologies and approaches to reduce this pollution. They need incentives and clear support to commercialize and implement these technologies. Carbon pricing creates incentives without dictating a particular approach. It lets businesses decide on the best way to reduce their pollution. What is most galling are the lies of omission and the things left unsaid, like those quarterly climate action incentive payments that go directly to Canadian households in backstop provinces every three months. For the first time, households in three Atlantic provinces will receive quarterly climate action incentive payments totalling hundreds of dollars a year. The first rebate payment will come in July, which is the same month that the fuel charge will take effect for the first time. The vast majority of households will never be out of pocket, with lower- and middle-income families benefiting the most. Starting next July, a family of four in Nova Scotia will receive a climate action incentive payment of $248 every three months. In Prince Edward Island, it will be $240 per quarter. In Newfoundland and Labrador, it will be $328 every quarter. For an Ontario family of four, the quarterly payment will be $244 starting in April. In Manitoba, next year's quarterly payment will be $264 every quarter. In Saskatchewan, it will be $340. In Alberta, a family of four will receive $386 four times a year. In total, 90% of the proceeds from the fuel charges are returned directly to Canadian households through the climate action incentive payments. The rest will be returned to businesses, farmers and indigenous peoples through various federal and provincial programs. I want to say two things about affordability. First, I know how concerned Canadians are about household budgets in these inflationary times. I understand, and I share each and every concern that Canadians have. That is why we are making sure that rebate payments go directly to households every three months, and eight out of 10 get more than they paid. Equally important is the hard fact that if nothing is done about climate change, it will cost us far more. The parliamentary budget office recently estimated the cost to the Canadian economy of $25 billion per year by 2025 if we go about business as usual. The status quo is not an option. Some may argue that we can simply go back in time and pretend that climate change does not exist. They would probably have better luck buying cryptocurrency. Our goal is to keep life affordable while developing a clean economy, good jobs and safe communities. A stable, affordable and predictable price on pollution is a key component of that.

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Mr. John Williamson (New Brunswick Southwest, CPC)

Feb/7/23 10:46:27 a.m.
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Madam Speaker, the minister, as well as the Liberals, like to pretend that energy prices, gas prices in particular, are like the weather. They are not responsible for it. They blame Russia. They blame everything else. I am going to give the minister an example and ask him to respond to it. My riding of New Brunswick Southwest is next to the state of Maine. Almost every day, the price of gasoline is 50¢ different. It is cheaper in Maine than it is in New Brunswick. All the gasoline comes from the refinery in Saint John, New Brunswick, so it is not like the Americans are producing cheaper gas from another source. The difference is all tax, and every year that gap is growing because of the Liberal carbon tax. The minister needs to own up to it. The carbon tax is meant to make prices higher, and it is working.

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Hon. Steven Guilbeault

Feb/7/23 10:47:23 a.m.
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Madam Speaker, here we have another clear example of misinformation that is being spread in the House, and it is somewhat ironic that it is coming from this member. He supported his province in implementing the federal backstop system on carbon pricing, and he mentioned it would mean that people would get money in their pockets. I do not know who coerced him to make this intervention in the House this morning, because just a few months ago he was in favour of carbon pricing in his home province of New Brunswick.

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Ms. Monique Pauzé (Repentigny, BQ)

Feb/7/23 10:48:03 a.m.
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Madam Speaker, I thank the minister for his speech. I want to talk about the shortcomings of the carbon tax. In April 2022, the commissioner of the environment and sustainable development analyzed carbon pricing, focusing on how the program was designed. He wondered whether a significant portion of emissions was covered by carbon pricing. The conclusion was “yes” for individuals but “no” for large emitters, even though large emitters benefit from relief programs. I would like to hear the minister's thoughts on that. I would suggest that this aspect of the carbon tax needs to be corrected.

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Hon. Steven Guilbeault

Feb/7/23 10:48:43 a.m.
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Madam Speaker, I thank my colleague for her question and her advocacy on this issue. However, I would like to remind her that we were not in government 10 years ago. The carbon pricing system that was proposed at the time was the Harper government's, not ours. That government was in favour of imposing a carbon tax one day, against it the next, and then in favour of it again the day after that. The Conservatives are still doing the same thing today. I would also like to remind my colleague that institutions such as the International Energy Agency and the International Monetary Fund have said that our carbon pricing system is a leading model for fighting climate change. According to these institutions, if only two-thirds of the countries in the world adopted the Canadian carbon pricing system, then every country on the planet would have already met the Paris targets.

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