SoVote

Context: House Hansard - 175 - Mar/29/23

Mr. Gord Johns (Courtenay—Alberni, NDP)

Mar/29/23 4:05:46 p.m.
Watch

Mr. Speaker, it is an honour to present a petition on behalf of residents of Union Bay, British Columbia, where there is an unregulated ship-breaking outfit doing business. The petitioners raise concerns to the House that there is a significant risk to workers and the environment associated with ship-breaking due to the presence of a wide variety of hazardous materials at the end of life of marine vessels. Unlike other jurisdictions, Canada lacks standards when it comes to ship-breaking, and there is a lack of domestic oversight of ship recycling and disposal of end-of-life vessels. The petitioners are calling on the government to simply develop enforceable federal standards to reduce the negative environmental and social impacts of ship recycling that meet or exceed the ship-recycling regulations in the EU, to provide assistance through loans or grants to seek long-term reputable ship-recycling companies to facilitate the implementation of new federal standards into operations and, finally, to develop a strategy for recycling end-of-life federally owned marine vessels.

175 words

Context: House Hansard - 175 - Mar/29/23

Mr. Gord Johns (Courtenay—Alberni, NDP)

Mar/29/23 7:08:11 p.m.
Watch

Madam Speaker, I am happy to be here tonight to talk about the Canada Post surcharge that was brought into play, as we know, to reflect the increase in diesel costs across Canada, but as we have seen gas prices increase, it has become so unaffordable for families. Over the Christmas holiday season, we saw that surcharge grow to 39.5%. Families right now are struggling to make ends meet. They are seeing skyrocketing grocery store prices, skyrocketing prices at the pumps, skyrocketing fees at the banks, skyrocketing telecom fees. What did Canada Post do? It imposed this incredible surcharge that is having a huge impact on small businesses that are struggling to make ends meet. Many of them trying to get out of the debt load that they are carrying from the COVID-19 pandemic. I find it really frustrating. We have seen greedflation, and big oil and gas companies, especially, have record profits at the pump. Here we have consumers getting dinged by a Crown corporation with a 39.5% surcharge and, at the same time, the same companies that are charging these astronomical fees for oil and gas are having record profits. There is a huge disconnect by the government. We know that governments around the world have charged an excess profit tax and have given it back to their citizens. Even in Britain, the Conservatives are imposing an excess profit tax on big oil and gas. We know how important it is for governments not only to intervene when we see big oil and gas and Crown corporations like Canada Post taking advantage of consumers but also to ensure that the money goes back to support citizens. There is another thing I am equally concerned about. Many rural and suburban Canada Post mail carriers who are filling up their tanks and delivering mail get a certain amount of money to buy that gas. It is a set amount, and they did not get an increase despite the fact that we saw this surcharge escalate to 39.5%. It is like Canada Post imposes this surcharge based on the diesel prices of the day but then it does not apply that same principle to the very important postal workers who we rely on to transport our mail in incredibly difficult conditions. We also see Canada Post failing to exercise and implement important asks of Canadians to bring in postal banking to create more profits within the corporation. Imagine the surcharge for people living in Nunavut or in the northern communities who are already paying an astronomical amount of money for medicine and groceries that some of them are counting on Canada Post to deliver. This also affects small businesses in rural Canada. This is completely unaffordable and unacceptable. We are calling on the government to make sure that it invests in Canada Post, supports postal workers and creates fairness there. The government also needs to impose an excess profit tax on the greedflation that is taking place right now with big oil and gas to ensure that we provide relief to Canadians, whether it be returned to them through the doubling of the GST in the future or in supporting Canada Post so it does not have to charge this levy.

544 words

Context: House Hansard - 175 - Mar/29/23

Mr. Gord Johns

Mar/29/23 7:15:57 p.m.
Watch

Madam Speaker, again, it is absolutely unacceptable that oil and gas companies are having record profits at the same time that consumers are not only paying at the pump but are getting charged fuel surcharges that are at 39.5% by Canada Post. It is having a huge impact on Canadians and we know that there is this unfairness for rural and suburban mail carriers who are also filling their own vehicles out of pocket. They get a fixed vehicle allowance per kilometre. Last year, they did not anticipate the high increases in fuel prices. This is a huge financial burden on them to be able to do their job. It is absolutely unfair that Canada Post is not giving them better support. Those very workers that we rely on in Canada to deliver mail from coast to coast to coast should be getting an increase so that they can afford the fuel, so that they can do their job. They love their job. They serve our community—

169 words