44th Parl. 1st Sess.
October 17, 2023 10:00AM
- Oct/17/23 4:54:56 p.m.
- Watch
Mr. Speaker, it is an honour to rise to represent my constituents, because cost of living, affordability, is a major issue for many of them.
I hesitate to say that it is an honour to rise to speak to this motion. I want to start by saying that I find the opposition day motions put forward by the official opposition are, for the most part, very repetitive. They do not add to the debate. They do not add to trying to solve these problems for Canadians. Rather they seem to be yet another platform for Conservatives to repeat the gimmicky phrases they have come up with, the cute little phrases.
They really do not seem to be addressing the issues. In fact, when I look at this opposition day motion that addresses the affordability crisis, what the Conservatives put forward as a solution is really not a solution at all. What they say to all those listening, those people who are struggling with the cost of living right now, is to ask for a pathway back to balanced budgets. If anybody thinks that is going to help Canadians who are struggling today, then they are sorely mistaken. People are struggling today in my riding.
On this side of the House, we are working to put forward real programs, many of which my colleague before me has discussed. These motions simply serve to put Canadians down, to insult their intelligence, by putting forward half-truths and hoping that by repeating the same phrases over and over again, as is often done in question period, somehow this misinformation will convince Canadians that these are facts and not simply half-baked truths and beliefs, and political speech that is meant to hurt our country by making people feel badly about Canada itself.
I find the negativity and the lack of true concern about coming up with real solutions for Canadians to be disheartening. I find it a waste of time. For a party that presumably puts a lot of emphasis on using scarce resources wisely, I find the time in question period and in opposition day motions is really an insult to this place and to Canadians. That is why I did not say it was an honour to rise to speak to this motion.
Since I have risen to speak to this motion, I would like to address a few things. We all agree that there are major challenges facing Canadians. Most of the motion put forward referred to these challenges. Where we really differ is when it comes to what the cause of that is and what should be done about it.
The Conservatives like to say, constantly, that the reason we have inflation in Canada is because of our deficits and because we are tackling climate change. However, common-sense Canadians can look around the world and see that inflation is not just a problem in Canada, it is a worldwide problem. In fact, there are many countries that do not have a price on pollution but have been suffering from inflation.
We can also look at the fact that inflation was 8.1% a year ago, and it is now 4%. It has come down drastically. Yet, in that same time period, the price on pollution did not change. If their explanation for why inflation is happening is due to the price on pollution or the carbon tax, they need to look at the numbers. I have mentioned it before, but there seems to be a mistaken belief on that side of the House that, because something happens during the same period of time as something else, it is somehow attributable to that. Anyone who took introductory statistics understands the difference between correlation and causality, and because something occurs over a period of time, it does not mean it is caused by that.
I wish the messaging would stop being so simplistic and based on polling of what slogan resonates with Canadians or gets them angry, and rather would try to address the real facts here. Inflation across Canada and the world has been caused by many things, and we all know that.
It has been caused by the climate crisis, it has been caused by the illegal invasion of Ukraine by Russia and it has been caused by the post-COVID economy. In fact, many economists say that this is a different kind of inflation because a lot of it is from the supply side as opposed to the demand side. Of course, as I am sure everyone knows, the inflationary government spending, if we want to call it that, contributes to the demand side, not the supply side. Therefore, much of this inflation has been caused by the contraction of supply as opposed to an increase in demand.
Having hopefully corrected some of that, I also want to talk about the price on pollution. We know on this side of the House that we must battle climate change and that many of the inflationary pressures, the cost increases we are seeing today, have been driven by the climate crisis. I think it was only two weeks ago that many opposition members were quoting the price of lettuce, carrots and onions. The increase in those prices has been mainly driven by droughts in California. Romaine lettuce is mostly grown there. We can look at what experts are saying and they will tell us that this is why prices have gone up as much as they have.
Tiff Macklem, whom the opposition likes to quote when blaming inflation on government spending, has said that the price on pollution is responsible for about a 0.15% increase in inflation. We are talking about inflation that has gone up by 6% or 7% and has come back down to 4%, but experts and economists would tell us that very little of that has been caused by the price on pollution. These same experts and many others would say that our price on pollution is one of the most effective and efficient ways to battle greenhouse gas emissions. Given that we have a climate action incentive rebate, most Canadians get back more than they pay, so when we talk about affordability, households are better off with this program.
If an opposition day motion were to put forward some realistic programs, some plans that could contribute to tackling these problems and helping us improve the programs we have in place, it would be welcome. However, to hear the same rhetoric over and over again is tiresome, insulting and, quite frankly, a waste of time. The Conservatives should contribute to the programs we have in place or give us some ideas. We have, in fact, already incorporated a few ideas that have been put forward. We welcomed them. We want to better things for Canadians. We are fighting for Canadians every day, and we encourage the Conservatives to join us in doing the same.
1160 words
- Hear!
- Rabble!
- add
- star_border
- share
- Oct/17/23 5:04:20 p.m.
- Watch
Mr. Speaker, I thank the member opposite for making the points I made earlier, using the lines they have developed and must think resonate with Canadians in his question. He has asked a question that in no way helps us focus on the problems facing us today.
47 words
- Hear!
- Rabble!
- add
- star_border
- share
- Oct/17/23 5:05:49 p.m.
- Watch
Mr. Speaker, it is very important to support our seniors. I agree wholeheartedly.
I disagree with the opposition that we are causing inflation through government spending. These are investments in people. At the same time, we do need to watch government spending right now, because we have a AAA credit rating and the cost of debt has gone up. We need to be careful with spending, and we are doing that. We are being fiscally responsible.
While I agree with the member opposite, I am not sure this is the time to put in place that policy given the other policy we are putting in place to support seniors and all people. We are trying to be very selective and targeted with our supports at this time.
127 words
- Hear!
- Rabble!
- add
- star_border
- share
- Oct/17/23 5:08:15 p.m.
- Watch
Mr. Speaker, corporate profits have been rising, and I am concerned about the level of competition. I am concerned about what is happening in Canada on that front. Our government is moving forward to address competition, increase competition in Canada and meet with these corporations. As I think the member opposite knows, there has been an excess profits tax put on banks and insurance companies, and it is certainly something we would consider doing in the future. However, we are trying to work jointly with these corporations, as we know that is the first and best way to do that.
I did want to mention one more thing. A lot of the problem with capitalism right now I put on Milton Friedman. Milton Friedman's Capitalism and Freedom book, which is the bible of the Leader of the Opposition, is the problem that caused a lot of what is happening. Businesses have stopped caring about other stakeholders and are only focusing on shareholder value.
164 words
- Hear!
- Rabble!
- add
- star_border
- share
- menumenu
- notificationsnotifications
- home
- mailmail
- searchsearch
