44th Parl. 1st Sess.
March 21, 2023 10:00AM
- Mar/21/23 2:13:14 p.m.
- Watch
Mr. Speaker, repeatedly the Liberal government proves that it does not care about Canadians. If it did, then inflation would not be at a record-breaking 40-year high. The Liberals' solution: an automatic escalator on the alcohol excise tax, increasing taxes on beer, wine and spirits by 6.3% on April 1, alongside the carbon tax like a sick April fools joke. This tax increase will devastate consumers; beer, wine and spirit producers, 95% of which are small businesses; and other Canadian entrepreneurs who can barely make ends meet as it is.
This tax hike will also have sweeping negative impacts on industries like tourism, food and hospitality, among many others. Enough is enough already. Taxpayers should not have to pay for the Liberal government's chronic fiscal mismanagement. They should not have to struggle under this cost-of-living crisis.
Will the Liberal government axe the planned excise tax, yes or no?
154 words
- Hear!
- Rabble!
- add
- star_border
- share
- Mar/21/23 2:50:36 p.m.
- Watch
Mr. Speaker, now that the New Democrats have forced an end to the government filibuster at committee and secured the testimony of the Prime Minister's chief of staff, I think we owe it to Canadians to make a little more time in this place to talk about the issues affecting them in the pocketbook, like grocery prices, for instance. Even as inflation begins to slow, grocery prices continue to rise at an outpaced rate, and grocery companies are walking away with all of that in profit while Canadians are cash-strapped.
The solution is to impose a windfall tax on grocery companies that are overcharging Canadians for their groceries as a clear signal that they will not get to walk away with that money and that the money will be reinvested in Canadians who are staring down the barrel of a recession.
143 words
- Hear!
- Rabble!
- add
- star_border
- share
- Mar/21/23 2:51:22 p.m.
- Watch
Mr. Speaker, as the hon. member will know, the inflation rate today for February was posted at 5.2%. That is still too high, and we are going to continue to support Canadians who need the support when they need it most. In our country, tax fairness is a fundamental principle of taxation. That is why we insisted that insurance companies and banks pay more with the Canada recovery dividend, 1.5% more, on income over $1 billion.
We will continue to watch very closely what the grocery companies are doing, and we will continue to be there fighting on the side of Canadians.
104 words
- Hear!
- Rabble!
- add
- star_border
- share
- Mar/21/23 3:03:31 p.m.
- Watch
Mr. Speaker, look at the facts. We reduced and actually eliminated excise duty on low-alcohol beer effective July 1, 2022, which makes our practices consistent with the G7. What the federal amount of this excise tax inflation increase represents is less than one penny per can of beer. That is what we are talking about.
56 words
- Hear!
- Rabble!
- add
- star_border
- share
- Mar/21/23 3:03:58 p.m.
- Watch
Mr. Speaker, the Prime Minister drove Canadians into the worst inflation in 40 years. If that were not enough, he is now attacking Canadian microbreweries. On April 1, the excise tax on beer, wine and spirits is going up by 6.3%. This will hurt everyone from producers to consumers. After eight years under this government, the price of everything is going up. Will the Prime Minister end his thirst for inflation? Because Canadians are high and dry.
80 words
- Hear!
- Rabble!
- add
- star_border
- share
- Mar/21/23 7:14:18 p.m.
- Watch
Mr. Speaker, it is a pleasure to participate in tonight's debate about affordability as well as fiscal responsibility in Canada. I share the concern that many Canadians are struggling to make ends meet in this period of elevated global inflation and the fact that the high cost of food and housing, in particular, is having significant economic repercussions.
We have disagreed significantly on the cause of inflation, and that has led to significantly different policy outcomes. While the Conservatives have made proposals such as cutting seniors' pensions and reducing employment insurance, we have put forward an affordability plan with measures to support Canadians, such as increased retirement security as well as inexpensive access to child care and dental care.
Thankfully, we continue to see a gradual decrease in inflation, and the OECD predicts that we will return to target by 2024. Last June, inflation in Canada was at 8.1% and, as we heard earlier today, it is down to 5.2%. That is still much too high, but it is lower than what we are seeing in peer economies. For example, in Europe, inflation is at 8.5% and in the U.K. it is at 10.1%. In fact, Canada is facing global economic headwinds from a position of fundamental economic strength.
In the member's opening statement, he spoke of worrying about Canadians losing their jobs, while Canadians have actually created more than 800,000 new jobs since the pandemic. This represents a 126% recovery rate from jobs lost due to COVID, compared to just 114% in the United States. In fact, the unemployment rate in Canada remains at historic lows. Also, the International Monetary Fund projects that Canada will have the strongest annual growth in the G7 by the fourth quarter of this year.
Through the COVID-19 pandemic, our government provided over $119 billion of support, which benefited 8.9 million Canadians through the CERB and over 900,000 small business owners through the CEBA. This allowed our most vulnerable families to put food on the table, and it helped to keep small business owners from going bankrupt. It is always difficult to demonstrate counterfactual arguments or, in other words, what would have happened if we had not stepped up to support Canadians during the pandemic. However, it is fair to say that our recovery would have been significantly worse and that thousands of businesses, whose doors are still open, would not have survived.
The Conservatives have criticized us by saying that not all of these funds went to their intended recipients. However, the Conservatives also know that we are continuing to audit and cost-recover those specific cases. Further, it was actually the Conservatives who put forward and passed a motion to stop auditing businesses that claimed the wage subsidy.
As we prepare for budget 2023, I would like to reaffirm our government's continued commitment to prudent fiscal management. We continue to enjoy a AAA credit rating as well as the lowest deficit and lowest net debt-to-GDP ratio in the G7. This allows us to continue to support our most vulnerable citizens who are struggling with elevated levels of inflation.
It includes $2.5 billion for 11 million Canadians with low and modest incomes through the special GST credit payment. It is spending that was supported by the Conservatives, including the member opposite. I thank the member opposite for his support because it benefited over 50% of seniors. We are also providing dental care for 230,000 children under the age of 12 and providing affordable child care so that working parents can re-enter the workforce more easily.
We will continue to invest in our economy to provide opportunities for middle-class Canadians, while making life more affordable and getting inflation under control.
634 words
- Hear!
- Rabble!
- add
- star_border
- share
- Mar/21/23 7:18:16 p.m.
- Watch
Mr. Speaker, the Liberals checked with their friends around the world and they have decided that Canadians have never had it so good. With respect to the inflation rate at 8.5% in Europe or 10.1% in the U.K., as the parliamentary secretary offered, those numbers and those words do nothing to fill the bellies of hungry Canadians, who cannot afford to eat because they are being crushed by the inflationary policies that have come to pass after eight years of the Liberal Prime Minister.
Canadians are looking for relief and the Liberals can offer it to them. Their carbon tax is not lowering emissions, but it is lowering Canadians' prosperity. I caution people against diminishing the concern that 40% of Canadians have about losing their job. “Lots of jobs were created”, the Liberals reply. The uncertainty, the concern and the inability to meet their financial commitments have Canadians up at night because they are concerned. They are looking for a government that is responsive to those fears and those concerns, and this carbon tax is not helping Canadians get ahead. It is not helping to provide a cleaner environment. The government needs to scrap its carbon tax.
202 words
- Hear!
- Rabble!
- add
- star_border
- share
- Mar/21/23 7:19:41 p.m.
- Watch
Mr. Speaker, our government understands that inflation and affordability are important issues for many Canadians, and that is why we are working hard to help Canadian families who need it the most. Our plan is simple. We are making life more affordable for Canadians while continuing to build an economy that works for everyone, and that includes the carbon price.
As the member knows, the climate incentive program and carbon pricing are making life more affordable for eight out ten families in his riding. If we cancelled it, it would make life less affordable. Why he would advocate to make life less affordable for Canadians at this time of elevated global inflation is beyond me, but I am sure we will have more opportunities to debate it.
127 words
- Hear!
- Rabble!
- add
- star_border
- share
- menumenu
- notificationsnotifications
- home
- mailmail
- searchsearch
