Hon. Yonah Martin (Deputy Leader of the Opposition): Minister, Canadians from coast to coast to coast are being crushed under the mounting pressure of grocery costs with food prices outpacing the general inflation rate for several months in a row.

On Tuesday, Statistics Canada reported that grocery prices have risen 10.8% since last year, the fastest pace we have seen in over 40 years. As Minister of Crown-Indigenous Relations, you are undoubtedly aware this pressure is felt all the more pointedly by Indigenous communities living in remote regions of the country. According to the non-profit Canadian Feed the Children, the 9% surge in food prices most of the country is grappling with will actually feel like 20% for remote Indigenous communities. This is unacceptable.

Yesterday, you issued a statement in which you summarized the work you did for Canadians and Indigenous communities over the summer. However, there was not a single mention of food security and grocery prices, even though food inflation is currently —

Senator Martin: Leader, the time has long passed for this government to get inflation under control and to provide relief to Canadians. The price of housing has doubled, interest rates continue to rise and families are forced to spend less at the grocery store. This government’s solution to the crisis is to reduce Canadians’ paycheques with higher payroll taxes, to raise gas and home heating taxes and, indirectly, the cost of food by tripling the carbon tax. Leader, will the government stand with Conservatives and Canadians and axe the carbon tax and cancel payroll tax hikes so families can feed their families and heat their homes?

Hon. Yonah Martin (Deputy Leader of the Opposition): Honourable senators, my question for the government leader concerns the escalating cost of living for Canadians. Yesterday’s Consumer Price Index numbers clearly show that the price for food has risen at the fastest pace in the last four decades. Conservatives have spent the last 24 months warning the government about inflation and the consequences of out‑of‑control spending. Yet the Prime Minister continues to spend and costs continue to rise. Now Canadians face a 10.8% increase in the cost to feed their families. Leader, when will the government finally realize they were wrong all along and cap government spending?