- Member of Parliament
- Member of Parliament
- Bloc Québécois
- Shefford
- Quebec
- Voting Attendance: 65%
- Expenses Last Quarter: $81,135.43
- Government Page
- May/23/24 12:40:15 p.m.
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Madam Speaker, what is even sadder is that my colleague's only solution for seniors is the dental care plan. He did not talk at all about what his government is responsible for. Let us be clear. Old age security should be taken care of by his government, which increased the benefits by only 10%, and only for people aged 75 and over. I keep hearing about it every day. Seniors do not understand why his government, which is in charge of this program, has not taken care of people aged 65 to 74. They are falling through the cracks. They do not have more money in their pockets. That is what I do not understand and find very sad.
As for setting partisanship aside, I will say again that if something is good for Quebec, we will vote in favour of it, and if it is not good for Quebec, we will vote against it. My colleague from Abitibi—Baie-James—Nunavik—Eeyou has worked on the issue of food assistance for children.
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- May/7/24 4:03:37 p.m.
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Madam Speaker, when it comes to supporting seniors, the government is nowhere to be found. I am still getting emails from seniors who do not understand why nothing was announced in the last budget. No, there was nothing for seniors.
This is about more than just dental care or pharmacare. That is not the answer I am looking for. Seniors also need more money in their pockets to get through this period of inflation, which affects them directly because they are on fixed incomes.
Why do the Liberals continue to insist on creating two classes of seniors? Why did they not use the budget as an opportunity to announce a 10% increase for seniors aged 65 to 74 as well?
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Madam Speaker, I heard my colleague praising the budget, but I would rather talk about the people who were completely overlooked in this budget. I would even say that it adds insult to injury.
Not only did the government still not budget for the increase in old age security for seniors aged 65 to 74, as urgently called for by the Bloc Québécois in a pre-budget request, not only did it fail to allocate funding for Bill C-319, but there is nothing for seniors.
No, I do not want to hear about measures for housing. These measures for housing are not aimed specifically at seniors. Seniors have specific requests. There is nothing in this budget for them. They have been overlooked. This only adds insult to injury.
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Mr. Speaker, I would like to circle back to an issue that my colleague touched on in his speech, which is the vulnerable situation seniors are in. I would like to come back to it because, this morning, in the House, I had the honour of tabling the report from the Standing Committee on Human Resources, Skills and Social Development and the Status of Persons with Disabilities. At that committee, my colleague's party and all the parties in the room unanimously recognized that we need to increase old age security for seniors. This could actually put money back into seniors' wallets and pockets.
Does he support his colleagues on the Standing Committee on Human Resources, Skills and Social Development and the Status of Persons with Disabilities who voted for Bill C-319?
Will he continue to pressure the Liberals, not just on the carbon tax, but to think about other solutions to help people in vulnerable situations, including seniors, by increasing old age security for all seniors and address this inequity between seniors aged 65 to 74 and those aged 75 and over?
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Mr. Speaker, yesterday, members from all parties—Liberal, Conservative, NDP and Bloc—unanimously voted to do away with two classes of seniors when it comes to receiving old age security.
Members will recall that the government had decided to limit benefit increases to those aged 75 and over only. In committee, MPs from all parties voted to do away with this terrible idea. Now, the government just needs to give royal recommendation so that we can do away with these two classes of seniors.
Will the government give royal recommendation to Bill C‑319?
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Madam Speaker, yet again, I hear the Liberals touting the grocery rebate as proof that they are finally going to help people out of their current financial difficulties. Would my colleague not agree with every seniors group in Quebec when they say that it is hard to argue with a good thing, but that what they really need is an increase in old age security for all seniors starting at age 65?
The inequality between the two classes of seniors unfairly created by the Liberals must stop. The government should agree to extend the 10% increase to seniors aged 65 to 74 as well. There is also the guaranteed income supplement. The government could also have provided an enhanced tax credit for experienced workers. There are other options that could have helped seniors over a much longer term.
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Madam Speaker, in his speech, my Conservative colleague talked about seniors in relation to the carbon tax.
I have a suggestion for my colleague. What the seniors in my riding, in Quebec, are asking me for and what they talk to me about is a little more direct assistance to help them get through this crisis. They want an increase in old age security for all seniors to address the inequality between people aged 75 and over and those under 75. This would be a first step towards recognizing that seniors are affected by the inflation crisis.
This budget contains nothing except a one-time cheque to help them with groceries. That cheque will be used up in no time.
I wonder if he could talk more about the importance of providing much more direct assistance to seniors, specifically by increasing old age security.
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- Mar/30/23 2:43:14 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, there is absolutely nothing. Here is what seniors will find in the budget to help them deal with the cost of living: absolutely nothing.
We still have two classes of seniors. Pensions for those aged 74 and under have not increased. Seniors receiving the guaranteed income supplement who want to continue working are still heavily penalized. Others who also want to help mitigate the labour shortage have no incentive to do so.
In a 300-page budget, why did the Liberals not spare a single thought for people aged 65 and over?
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- Mar/27/23 2:41:04 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, on the eve of the budget, I would remind the House that in 2021, this government created a class of vulnerable seniors. It increased the old age security benefit, but only for people aged 75 and over, leaving seniors aged 65 to 74 out in the cold.
Tomorrow's budget is the perfect opportunity to end this discrimination between those who are old enough and those who are not old enough to deserve a decent quality of life. Inflation makes no such distinction. Will this government finally correct the injustice it has created?
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moved for leave to introduce Bill C‑319, An Act to amend the Old Age Security Act (amount of full pension).
She said: Mr. Speaker, I am honoured to rise in the House today to introduce a bill to improve the financial health of seniors.
This bill essentially contains two parts. The first part aims to eliminate the discrimination that currently exists on the basis of age. We are asking that all seniors receive the 10% increase in old age security starting at age 65, not just those aged 75 and over. The second part aims to raise the eligibility threshold for the guaranteed income supplement to $6,500, without cutting it, for seniors who decide to remain in the workforce.
With these two measures, which increase both the basic amount and the working income of seniors, we aim to ensure that they can better cope with inflation. That is the least we can do to allow seniors to live in dignity.
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- Dec/6/22 10:15:06 a.m.
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Madam Speaker, 33 years ago, on December 6, 1989, a man entered the École Polytechnique in Montreal and murdered 14 women simply because they were women.
We have not forgotten Geneviève Bergeron, Hélène Colgan, Nathalie Croteau, Barbara Daigneault, Anne-Marie Edward, Maud Haviernick, Barbara Klucznik-Widajewicz, Maryse Laganière, Maryse Leclair, Anne-Marie Lemay, Sonia Pelletier, Michèle Richard, Annie St-Arneault and Annie Turcotte.
All of us who are old enough remember where we were, who we were with and what we were doing when we heard of the massacre. In our hearts remain those feelings of confusion, horror, incomprehension, incredulity, sadness and shame that we felt after the events of December 6.
We carry in our hearts the memory of these women who died needlessly. The tragedy of the Polytechnique now carries a duty of remembrance. We must be aware of the mistakes and tragedies of the past in order to prevent them from happening again. The duty of remembrance requires words, because we must name misogyny, femicide, mass murder, armed violence. These are ugly, dark and dirty words. Unfortunately, though, they are words we continue to hear.
They continue to strike, humiliate and destroy. I would like new words to associate with the women at the Polytechnique. We need new words: love, hope, solidarity, determination.
The duty of remembrance requires us to name things, take action and live in hope. Equality is making headway, we are becoming more and more aware of misogyny, and we can win. We will never entirely win the battle against violence. There will always be tragedies.
However, I am convinced, and I want to be convinced, that we are moving in the right direction. We have no other choice. We owe it to all those who lost their lives because they were women. We owe it to the young women of the Polytechnique, to our sisters recently murdered in Manitoba and to all those who have disappeared or been murdered across Canada, to the hundreds and thousands of women killed in the past 33 years because they were women.
We need to move in the right direction. The duty of remembrance also comes with the duty to act. Better gun control laws, the prohibition of assault weapons and the firearms registry in Quebec are steps in the right direction.
I will not say that Bill C‑21 is perfect, or that the government is doing things the way it should, but I will say that we need to limit access to assault weapons and that that is also a step in the right direction.
Raising the collective awareness of sexual assault cases and of sexual crimes in general is a step in the right direction. It gives us hope.
The École Polytechnique women might have been mothers and even grandmothers today.
For 33 years, some of the survivors have gone to candlelight vigils on their own, then they brought their sons and daughters, and, this evening, we may see some grandchildren. These successive generations that share the memory of those who were lost demonstrate that we have not forgotten this tragedy, the loss, the responsibility to take action, and that we have not lost hope.
Geneviève, Hélène, Nathalie, Barbara Daigneault, Anne‑Marie Edward, Maud, Barbara Klucznik‑Widajewicz, Maryse Laganière, Maryse Leclair, Anne‑Marie Lemay, Sonia, Michèle, Annie St‑Arneault and Annie Turcotte. We acknowledge our debt and we shall not forget.
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Madam Speaker, I thank my colleague.
As a member of the Standing Committee on the Status of Women, I too am thinking of the families of the victims, the indigenous women and girls who have disappeared. There was another case recently in Winnipeg. Such a tragedy.
My colleague spoke about dental care for seniors. The government often holds this up as an example of how it is helping seniors. However, how can it ignore all seniors aged 65 to 74?
Does my colleague not think that old age security should be increased for them and that this is what would truly help seniors?
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- Nov/29/22 2:43:32 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, that is not what I am talking about. The Liberals gave seniors aged 75 and up a $500 election cheque, but they gave nothing to seniors aged 65 to 74. They are increasing OAS by 10% for seniors aged 75 and up, but they are not giving seniors aged 65 to 74 a penny more. That is the discrimination that I am talking about. Enough is enough.
Half of seniors are living in situations of insecurity. The government knows it. The government could increase OAS by $110 a month for all seniors starting at age 65, as we have been proposing for years. However, the government chooses to do nothing.
Why?
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- Nov/29/22 2:42:14 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, a study by the AQDR and the Observatoire québécois des inégalités shows that half of seniors do not have the income necessary to live in dignity, and we are not just talking about seniors aged 75 and over. These numbers do not even take into account the record inflation that is currently affecting the cost of groceries and housing.
Unlike the government, inflation does not discriminate against seniors based on their age. We have a study here that shows that half of seniors do not have a livable income. What more will it take for this government to increase the old age security pension for all seniors aged 65 and up?
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Madam Speaker, I thank my colleague for his speech. He talked about two things that caught my attention: the situation of seniors and food banks.
The government often answers that it helps seniors by helping food banks. I think it is an absolutely degrading shortcut to tell seniors that all they need to do is line up at the food bank.
That is a fact. Food bank workers in my riding are reaching out to me to say that the number of seniors requesting food hampers is growing. Is it not time the government realized that something needs to be done to improve their financial situation?
I do not want to get into the issue of the carbon tax because what seniors' groups in Quebec are asking for in the way of help is for the government to improve old age security, which has not been increased for long enough. They also want the Liberals to do away with their proposal to increase the OAS only for those aged 75 and up.
The government is essentially failing half of seniors. All those between the ages of 65 and 74 have to go to food banks because they too are being affected by rising inflation.
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Madam Speaker, I thank my colleague from Davenport for her speech on this bill, which seeks to help people.
The government likes to boast about things like helping seniors. I will come back to this, because I was talking about it just this morning with a food bank representative who reminded me how difficult the situation is for seniors. Do we really want to force seniors to line up at food banks?
This bill is only partially helpful at this point. The government boasts about providing help, but it is only helping seniors aged 75 and over. This means that half of seniors are being left behind by this government. Those aged 65 to 74 are being forced to line up at food banks. Is that fair?
This is just the tip of the iceberg, since we know that many seniors are too proud to ask for help. They are at home and suffering. What does the government have to offer people aged 65 to 74?
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- Sep/27/22 3:27:02 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, in his speech, my colleague addressed the issue of dental care. What amazes me is that they are trying to see this as a solution for contributing to finances, including seniors. Does my colleague not agree that before getting their teeth taken care of, people need to eat?
The government is still refusing to give seniors what they need, in other words, help seniors who receive old age security at 65. There should not be two classes of seniors. The $110-a-month increase for seniors aged 75 and up is discriminatory and unfair. It is ageist.
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- Jun/17/22 12:24:17 p.m.
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Madam Speaker, I am pleased to rise in the House today to present two petitions on the same subject, which I am proud to sponsor.
These petitions were signed by almost 7,000 citizens across the country and formally call on the Canadian government to significantly increase old age security payments starting immediately so that all eligible seniors aged 65 and over can receive an additional $110 a month.
The signatories to these petitions believe that the federal government is discriminating by increasing old age security only for seniors aged 75 and over. This request is all the more reasonable given today's runaway inflation, which disproportionately affects seniors of all ages, not just those aged 75 and over.
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- Jun/7/22 10:47:52 a.m.
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Mr. Speaker, I thank my hon. colleague from Mégantic—L'Érable for his speech.
As my colleague from Jonquière has said, and we saw again this morning, oil companies are making record profits, and so are the banks. With that in mind, I wonder how today's Conservative motion responds to an important notion of tax fairness. Do we really want the oil companies and the banks to keep getting richer?
That said, the member talked a lot about families, which is fine. We are aware that families are affected by inflation, but what about seniors who are on fixed incomes? I wonder if he could comment on why it might be important to support a measure the Bloc Québécois has been calling for for quite some time. I am talking about increasing seniors' incomes through the universal old age security pension, beginning at age 65. Inflation does not hit only those who are 75 and over. It affects all seniors aged 65 and up.
It seems to me that today's Conservative motion offers a simplistic solution to a much bigger problem and fails to consider the much broader view of the problem of inflation and rising prices.
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- May/4/22 9:05:18 p.m.
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Mr. Chair, I thank my colleague for her speech and for taking the time to put names to this tragedy, which I think could be called the shadow pandemic, because it happened during this pandemic. These are people we are talking about; these are numbers. In the case of missing and murdered indigenous women, it is difficult to get numbers and statistics because it is not spoken about. It is hard to speak up on behalf of these women; they have been completely forgotten.
How does my colleague think that we could get a lot more numbers and statistics that would help bring this issue out of the shadows so that we can finally address it and find concrete solutions for these women whose disappearances have gone unacknowledged?
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