44th Parl. 1st Sess.
April 17, 2023 11:00AM
Madam Speaker, as a foodie myself, I thank the hon. member for joining the Standing Committee on Agriculture and Agri-Food and putting forward this bill. In my riding of Mississauga—Streetsville, there are many small businesses and restaurants that are part of our thriving food industry. Can the hon. member share what benefits this bill would have for them?
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Mr. Speaker, I appeal to the government members' humanity and compassion. I am asking them to set aside all partisanship and to give royal recommendation to Bill C-215 on EI sickness benefits.
As we speak, there are men and women who are sick and who need these extended benefits. The House voted unanimously to extend the benefits. The majority of MPs voted in favour of the bill. All we are waiting for now is royal recommendation. Will the government members give royal recommendation to the bill?
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- Apr/17/23 2:42:15 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, we understand that EI benefits need to be fairer, more responsive and more adaptable to the needs of Canada's evolving workforce.
That is why we continue to be committed to comprehensively modernizing the system. We have already extended EI sickness benefits from 15 to 26 weeks. With budget 2023, we propose extending support for seasonal workers until October 2024.
We have always said we need to get EI reform right. It is a priority, and we are on it.
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- Apr/17/23 6:18:50 p.m.
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Madam Speaker, the point is about investing in health care and not believing that this is going to help seniors. I cannot imagine anyone truly believing that that would be the case when we are investing $198 billion over 10 years in health care.
I used to be the health care critic in the province of Manitoba at the Manitoba legislature. I can assure the member across the way who just stood up on the point of order that a good portion of our health care services are there to support our seniors. Obviously they support everyone, but I can tell members that our seniors truly value and appreciate the health care system we have in Canada and would appreciate and value a federal government that makes, as we have, a 10-year commitment of $198 billion over the next 10 years.
We have a government that has recognized, in many ways, the benefits that can support Canadians in other areas. We hear a lot about housing. Going back to the days when I was an MLA, at one time every political party inside the House, all of them, including the New Democrats, opposed the federal government playing a role in housing. That was in the early nineties.
Mr. Alexandre Boulerice: Not us.
Mr. Kevin Lamoureux: Yes, everyone, Madam Speaker.
I can tell members that for the first time, we have a Prime Minister with a government that not only talks about the importance of housing in Canada, but is invested in housing like no government in the history of the country. We have the first-ever housing strategy. We are investing literally hundreds of millions of dollars in housing every year. We are supporting tens of thousands of non-profit housing units throughout the country so that there is housing for seniors, people with disabilities and people of low incomes.
We have supported organizations like Habitat for Humanity to ensure there are opportunities for people who could never own a home to own a home. We are supporting the expansion of housing co-operatives. We are putting limits on foreign investments. We believe that houses are there to be lived in, that they should not be used as an investment tool by foreigners. There is also the rapid housing initiative.
Time and time again, the Minister of Housing is up during question period reminding members the degree to which we are investing in housing. If we take a look at it, not only have we demonstrated that we have a role to play in housing, but we have put the challenge out to other stakeholders and levels of government to jump on board and take the types of actions that ensure housing is more affordable.
Within this budget, we created the first-time homeowner accounts. We want municipalities in particular to be there, because they really do play an important role in this. We want provinces and other stakeholders to come to the table and address the needs of housing.
The federal government is there, but the federal government cannot do it alone, and we have recognized that. We have done more than any other government. We would have to go back generations on the housing file. We will continue to be there.
We talk about the issue of accountability. It is interesting that the Conservatives, as I mentioned at the beginning, like to focus on personal attacks. This budget is a true reflection of what Canadian expectations are of the government.
Just last week, I had the Prime Minister of Canada on McPhillips Street, at the Manitoba Building Trades Institute, where he had a town hall. There were union members and others who showed up, unscripted, to ask questions of the Prime Minister to deal with issues surrounding the budget and other issues, and what the Prime Minister did in Winnipeg, he has done in other jurisdictions.
We have a Minister of Finance who consistently is reaching out and listening to stakeholders. We have members of Parliament in the caucus who are consistently reaching out to their constituents and reflecting what they are hearing, whether it is on this budget or legislative measures we are taking. This is a budget for all Canadians, and it is a reflection, in terms of what we are hearing. I believe it has Canada on the right track, and the stats will clearly demonstrate that, whether it is with jobs, social services or having the backs of Canadians.
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