- Member of Parliament
- Member of Parliament
- Conservative
- Bellechasse—Les Etchemins—Lévis
- Quebec
- Voting Attendance: 65%
- Expenses Last Quarter: $88,640.78
- Government Page
- Apr/18/24 2:24:24 p.m.
- Watch
Mr. Speaker, I have a number for him: nine. Nine years of this Liberal government means nine years of inflationary policies, nine years of wasting Canadians' money, nine years of recklessness and indifference towards them. It means money everywhere except in the pockets of Canadians. It means criminals everywhere except in prison. It means affordable rent everywhere except in Canada. Why are so many things broken? The answer is very simple and very clear. It is because of this Prime Minister, who is not worth the cost.
Will he put an end to the budget mess and give a little more thought to the Canadians who cannot even put a roof over their heads because of him?
117 words
- Hear!
- Rabble!
- add
- star_border
- share
- Apr/11/24 2:24:14 p.m.
- Watch
Mr. Speaker, to the already overly long list of this Liberal government's failures, we can add extravagant use of public funds and squandering of Quebeckers' dollars. This government spends Canadians' money like water. For the past eight years, it has had no budgetary discipline, causing the debt to double. It has not balanced a single budget, yet it wants to handle provincial issues. Quebec Premier François Legault has made it clear that this government needs to mind its own business.
Will it listen, yes or no?
89 words
- Hear!
- Rabble!
- add
- star_border
- share
- Jan/29/24 3:02:44 p.m.
- Watch
Mr. Speaker, this government has been in power for eight years, and in that time, the debt has doubled, inflation has hit a new record and not one single budget has been balanced. The Bloc Québécois has given its full support to all of that.
We Conservatives will balance the budget. How? We will get rid of wasteful Liberal spending on things like ArriveCan and the unused $54 million. Will the Prime Minister take responsibility for this fiasco and hand over the reins to people with good sense?
93 words
- Hear!
- Rabble!
- add
- star_border
- share
- Nov/24/23 11:38:08 a.m.
- Watch
Mr. Speaker, over the past eight years, this Prime Minister has added billions of dollars to the debt, more than the other 22 prime ministers combined. Let that sink in for a moment. Next year, he will spend more on servicing his debt than he has on health care transfers to the provinces. Clearly, this Prime Minister is not worth the cost.
Why are the Liberals ignoring our calls to present a plan to return to a balanced budget in order to lower interest rates and lower inflation?
90 words
- Hear!
- Rabble!
- add
- star_border
- share
- Nov/21/23 3:00:33 p.m.
- Watch
Mr. Speaker, with all due respect, I have a reality check for my colleague. The economic situation is such that a 30-year-old man from Sherbrooke has to resort to spending the winter in a tent because he does not have access to affordable housing.
The costly Bloc-Liberal coalition wants to drastically increase the carbon tax, and that makes everything more expensive. Voting for the Bloc Québécois is costly.
Today, we want the government to do three things in the mini-budget: cancel carbon tax increases, balance the budget and build housing without bureaucracy. Will the Minister of Finance surprise us and balance the budget, or will she disappoint us once again?
118 words
- Hear!
- Rabble!
- add
- star_border
- share
- Nov/21/23 2:59:18 p.m.
- Watch
Mr. Speaker, Scotiabank has calculated that government overspending has added two percentage points to Canada's interest rates. As a result, Canadians who are struggling to pay their mortgages are still suffering.
I remind members that, in eight years, this government has yet to present a balanced budget. Will the government announce a plan to return to balanced budgets in today's mini-budget so that interest rates can come down and Canadians can keep their homes?
77 words
- Hear!
- Rabble!
- add
- star_border
- share
- Jun/13/23 2:48:51 p.m.
- Watch
Mr. Speaker, young adults are living in basements. Students are living in shelters or slums, even. Another heartbreaking example is the couple in Montreal who have to sleep in their car because they cannot find affordable housing.
The government is spending lavishly and fuelling inflation. It needs to take action today, now.
What is the target date for balancing the budget?
62 words
- Hear!
- Rabble!
- add
- star_border
- share
- Jun/12/23 2:44:47 p.m.
- Watch
Mr. Speaker, as everyone knows, the government's reckless spending is causing serious problems across the country.
A few days ago, the Bank of Canada had to react to this Prime Minister's inflationary spending by raising interest rates for the ninth time. Canadians are struggling to stay warm, to buy food and to pay their mortgages, which, I would remind members, have doubled. Some Canadians are even in default.
Will the Prime Minister immediately put a stop to his inflation-causing deficit spending and table a plan to balance the budget as soon as possible?
96 words
- Hear!
- Rabble!
- add
- star_border
- share
- May/29/23 8:40:46 p.m.
- Watch
Mr. Chair, when does the Minister of Finance plan to table a balanced budget?
14 words
- Hear!
- Rabble!
- add
- star_border
- share
- May/29/23 8:40:12 p.m.
- Watch
Mr. Chair, in November, she told us that there would be a return to a balanced budget in 2027-28. Four months later, she is flip-flopping and tabling a budget that says something completely different.
She is not planning a return to a balanced budget. Who asked her to go back on her decision?
55 words
- Hear!
- Rabble!
- add
- star_border
- share
- May/29/23 8:39:37 p.m.
- Watch
Mr. Chair, we are responsible before the House of Commons for the documents we table, the budgets we table. It is important, it is fundamental in our democracy.
Is the Prime Minister the one who asked the Minister of Finance to go back on her promise to return to a balanced budget?
52 words
- Hear!
- Rabble!
- add
- star_border
- share
- May/29/23 8:37:56 p.m.
- Watch
Mr. Chair, this budget has disappointed us and has disappointed a lot of people. Everyone knows that the debt has exploded under the Liberals. The budget has not been balanced in the last eight years.
This is despite the fact that the minister made a nice promise in November that filled us with hope, announcing a return to balanced budgets in 2027-28. What we have seen in the budget documents is that, instead, there will be a deficit of around $14 billion in 2027-28, so there is no return to balanced budgets in sight.
My question is this. Who asked the minister to go back on her promise to return to a balanced budget?
117 words
- Hear!
- Rabble!
- add
- star_border
- share
- Apr/18/23 3:54:59 p.m.
- Watch
Madam Speaker, we will have the opportunity to present an election platform in due course. One thing is clear. We will not compromise on that. We will present a balanced budget.
31 words
- Hear!
- Rabble!
- add
- star_border
- share
- Apr/18/23 3:53:26 p.m.
- Watch
Madam Speaker, I am honoured by my colleagues' interest in my speech today. What I am most interested in today is reminding my colleagues how hard Canadians work every day and how they are facing major costs every day for food, housing and other essentials.
Our commitment is that, when we form the government, we will table a balanced budget.
60 words
- Hear!
- Rabble!
- add
- star_border
- share
- Apr/18/23 3:51:39 p.m.
- Watch
Madam Speaker, I would like to thank my colleague for her question. I will answer with another question that she could ask the Minister of Finance, who announced in November's economic statement that we would return to a balanced budget in 2027-28. Now we have learned that that will not be the case. Rather, there will be a $14‑billion deficit, and there is nothing in any of the budget documentation about a return to a balanced budget.
I think that that is the real question today, the only one that matters to Canadians.
97 words
- Hear!
- Rabble!
- add
- star_border
- share
- Apr/18/23 3:40:40 p.m.
- Watch
Madam Speaker, it is with great pleasure that I stand today in the House to speak about the budget tabled by the government on March 28, 2023. Just because the government is bragging about it does not make it an excellent budget, quite the contrary.
In the political arena, the opposition is expected to find flaws in the budget. That is healthy, and it is part of the game. However, upon closer inspection and careful reading of the budget, it becomes apparent that it has some major shortcomings, indeed.
Unfortunately, whoever looks at the broad lines of the budget tabled by the government can see that it is another unbalanced budget. This is really on trend for the government. How can it be that we can still not manage to have a balanced budget? We have not had a balanced budget since 2015.
The government clearly stated last November in its economic statement that it intended to have a balanced budget by 2027-28. What they are announcing now is that there will be a $14-billion deficit in 2027-28. We are therefore nowhere near the forecasted balanced budget that would allow us as a country to compete and have a bit of credibility on this planet.
The budget also includes $43 billion in new spending. I think that, here as well, in this inflationary environment, we are dealing with a government that has the wind in its sails but not much of a rudder. There is $43 billion in additional spending. I do not think that that is what Canadians expected. They were expecting a balanced budget. Unfortunately, that is not what we are talking about today.
As a result, we have an enormous debt, and it is growing at a rapid pace. It is approximately $1.2 trillion. I do not know what everyone else thinks, but I am not even sure how many zeroes that is. The debt is enormous.
What that means for Canadians is that they will have to continue to tighten their belts and pay up. We are right in the middle of income tax season, and I am convinced that there are Canadians out there today who are wondering how they are going to manage.
In my view, and that of my party, this is a downright irresponsible, unfair and visionless budget.
I think we need to consider where this country is today. Need I remind my colleagues that we are going through an inflationary crisis? Inflation is at a 40-year high. I will give members a quick overview, although I could spend a lot of time on the subject. A family of four will spend $1,065 more on groceries in 2023 than in 2022. That is a lot of money. It is more than what the government is promising to give families to lower the bill.
House prices have gone up 21% in the Quebec City region alone. The average mortgage payment has doubled since 2015. I will point out that 2015 is the year the Liberals came to power. The average mortgage payment is now $3,000 a month.
Food bank use has reached record highs, with around 1.5 million people seeking help each month. Some parents are now skipping meals so their children can eat. This is Canada. We never would have imagined we would get to this point.
Also, nine out of 10 Canadians say they do not even dream of owning a house. Becoming a homeowner gives us freedom. Canadians should be able to hope to one day buy a house. Instead, young people are now sleeping in their parents’ basement or, worse yet, moving into shelters because they cannot afford housing.
One in five people are skipping meals and, based on what we unfortunately learned today, some 60% of Canadians are considering not taking a vacation this summer. We also learned in a release today that food inflation was still hurting Canadians in February and that, for a seventh consecutive month, the price of groceries rose by 10% or more over the same period last year. This is where we are today.
Need I also remind my colleagues that we have a government that spends recklessly? This government alone has increased the debt more than all other previous governments combined. That is something. It now costs $44 billion to service the debt. It is counterintuitive and counterproductive to go on this way. We are spending money on interest rather than on services to the public. We should be outraged about that. However, on the other side of the House, the government keeps spending recklessly and has added $43 billion in new spending in this year’s budget.
Another factor we must consider is the collaboration, or coalition, between the Liberal government and the NDP. To remain in power and ensure its stability until 2025, the Liberal Party has agreed to implement the NDP's agenda with great speed and at great cost. I would like to remind the House that Canadians did not vote for that. Only 17% of Canadians voted for the NDP. That is certainly not enough to justify endorsing and implementing the NDP's agenda.
One key item on the NDP's agenda is dental care. Dental care was announced only a few months ago, but already its cost has more than doubled. I think that Canadians are entitled to ask questions and to feel outraged, especially since even the Parliamentary Budget Officer, a credible and independent man who plays an important role on Parliament Hill, has questions about this program. First, he said that it is incredibly expensive. Then he said that people only have to say they have an appointment with the dentist to receive a reimbursement.
That is a slippery slope. People will want to be reimbursed even before they get to their appointment and before getting the bill, especially since, as we know, many Canadians already have provincial or private dental insurance. This measure is costing almost $13 billion when it should cost only $5 billion, and Canadians are footing the bill.
Since my time is almost up, I will wrap up by saying that, on this side of the House, we are hoping for a much more responsible government, a government that, like Canadians and parents, knows how to count. These people know that when they spend five dollars, it is five dollars well spent. If someone earns $10, they should not spend $12.
1086 words
- Hear!
- Rabble!
- add
- star_border
- share
- Feb/14/23 2:22:35 p.m.
- Watch
Mr. Speaker, we know that they think it is normal to pay $6,000 for a night at a hotel. After eight years under this Prime Minister, Canadians are worse off. Inflation is eating away at their wallets. Today we are debating a motion calling on the government to cap its spending, stop wasting resources and eliminate the taxes and deficits that are causing the cost-of-living crisis.
Will the government take the necessary fiscal and budgetary measures to get the country out of this disastrous inflationary crisis?
89 words
- Hear!
- Rabble!
- add
- star_border
- share
Mr. Speaker, the Parliamentary Budget Officer tabled a study on the estimated cost of implementing Bill C‑13 on official languages.
Treasury Board, Canadian Heritage and IRCC refused to provide the PBO with their planned expenditures for implementing this bill.
This is public money. It is money given to us by our citizens. This is a question of transparency and integrity.
What are they trying to hide?
69 words
- Hear!
- Rabble!
- add
- star_border
- share
- Apr/6/22 2:38:07 p.m.
- Watch
Mr. Speaker, Canadians have had enough. The cost of living and inflation are at a 30-year high, and Canadians overburdened. Everything is more expensive and wages are not going up.
The government does not realize how stressful this is for thousands of Canadians. The media and our constituents are telling us about untenable situations and about the difficult choices that have to be made, such as deciding between buying food or paying rent.
Will the Prime Minister commit to presenting a budget that tackles inflation or will he let Canadians continue to suffer as a result of his policies?
100 words
- Hear!
- Rabble!
- add
- star_border
- share
- Mar/31/22 2:38:03 p.m.
- Watch
Mr. Speaker, he could at least have the decency to answer the question.
The NDP-Liberal party has no idea of what our constituents are going through. We meet with them every weekend. What do they talk to us about? They talk about groceries, which now cost an additional $1,000, and houses, which cost an average of $868,000.
When will the government do something? The budget is coming, so it is time to do something.
77 words
- Hear!
- Rabble!
- add
- star_border
- share
- menumenu
- notificationsnotifications
- home
- mailmail
- searchsearch
