Routine Proceedings
Mr. Speaker, it is a pleasure to be here today again to speak on behalf of the residents of Simcoe North and to represent their views, as well as to discuss a very important issue with respect to what we believe is potentially anti-competitive behaviour in Canada's e-transfer ecosystem. These revelations became known to us at the industry committee a couple of weeks ago. It is clear that Interac u…
Read full speech →Routine Proceedings
Mr. Speaker, I think we need to consider what is happening in other jurisdictions. Other jurisdictions that have moved much faster on payments modernization, in particular the U.K. and the U.S., have seen transaction fees reduced for users. I do recognize that we have to think about the different types of players throughout the entire ecosystem: small businesses, medium-sized businesses, and large…
Read full speech →Orders of the Day
Mr. Speaker, what we should be concerned about is if a law has been broken. I do not care which party a person is from or when it happens, so long as it is within the statutory limitation period. That person should face the consequences of the law that was broken. In this circumstance, when board members are purposely and knowingly benefiting companies they have a pecuniary and financial interest …
Read full speech →Orders of the Day
Mr. Speaker, that is an interesting question. Maybe there are a few lawyers on that side who need to educate Liberal members on what a conflict of interest is, because it seems there is only one party in the House that, time and time again, does not understand what a conflict of interest is. Frankly, with respect to the RCMP, it does not have to look at the documents or use them in court if it doe…
Read full speech →Orders of the Day
Mr. Speaker, that is the best question I have received thus far on my speech. The government tried to make that argument at the time but my friend from Calgary Rocky Ridge is correct that Parliament has requested these documents, which is the full right of the House. The fact that the government is not providing them speaks volumes. One wonders what the Liberals are hiding. That is a common refrai…
Read full speech →Orders of the Day
Mr. Speaker, I have never seen a case where $400 million of taxpayer money went to ineligible recipients with direct conflicts of interest to members who sit on the board, who, by the way, are friends of the government and former employers of the Minister of Environment. I have never seen so much grift in my entire experience as a member of Parliament, which is only a few years. This $400 million …
Read full speech →Orders of the Day
Mr. Speaker, I love the comments from my hon. colleagues. Law & Order is a fantastic show; even the new one that is filmed in Toronto. Maybe they should actually watch some of it to figure out how these investigations happen. However, if the RCMP had access to documents that might be inadmissible, it could at least put together a timeline of events and it could put together what has occurred. The …
Read full speech →Orders of the Day
Mr. Speaker, my colleague from Renfrew—Nipissing—Pembroke is always very astute. She reads the fine details, and yes, she is correct that the $400 million was on a sampling of transactions. Once we find $400 million has gone to ineligible recipients from the sampling, should we not look at the full amount? Maybe the government would be interested in looking at the full amount, but it has not sugge…
Read full speech →Orders of the Day
Mr. Speaker, the government is trying to hide something. I would love this to be the seminal case that goes to the Supreme Court about testing the privacy rights of individuals who have had their documents confidentially exposed by an order of the House when it is within its due right to get the documents. If that goes to the Supreme Court to test the government's position and the fact that someon…
Read full speech →Routine Proceedings
With regard to full-time Governor in Council appointees: (a) what GCQ 9 classified positions are currently (i) vacant, (ii) filled; (b) what GCQ 10 classified positions are currently (i) vacant, (ii) filled; and (c) for each filled position in (a) and (b), who was appointed to the position?
Read full speech →Routine Proceedings
With regard to the filing requirements for the GST and HST for businesses, broken down by calendar year from 2018 through 2023, and by province or territory: how many businesses filed their GST return using (i) only electronic returns, (ii) paper returns for some, or all, of their filings?
Read full speech →Orders of the Day
Mr. Speaker, it is always a pleasure to rise in the House on behalf of the constituents of Simcoe North. It is nice to see you in the chair. Usually, that is not the case when I am speaking. Before I get into the heart of the matter, I would like to acknowledge a local benefactor in Simcoe North, who, over the summer, announced that he was donating $22.5 million to local charities in the region, i…
Read full speech →Oral Questions
Mr. Speaker, after nine years of the Liberal government, the Prime Minister is not worth the cost. In the latest scandal to hit the Canada Revenue Agency, over 60,000 taxpayers had their personal, private information hacked. Not only is the information of these individuals floating around on the Internet, but this also cost taxpayers money. Over $190 million has been improperly paid to scam artist…
Read full speech →Orders of the Day
Mr. Speaker, it is always a pleasure to rise here, and I appreciated my colleague's comments. I like to be collaborative, and we are obviously at a bit of a stalemate. I have an idea to propose that I want my hon. colleague's thoughts on: Either the documents get produced or maybe the government should just get back the $400 million. I would support either one of those things happening, and then m…
Read full speech →Oral Questions
Mr. Speaker, the Financial Times wrote one year ago that, if current trends continued, Canadian living standards would continue to decline. After a year, it has gotten worse. This week, The Economist said that Canada is now “poorer than Alabama”. Will any minister over there admit that Canadian living standards are in decline?
Read full speech →Oral Questions
Mr. Speaker, the minister wants Canadians to believe that they have never had it so good, but here is what Canadians are actually experiencing: the worst housing inflation, the worst mortgage debt, the worst consumer debt in the G7 and income per person today that is lower than it was 10 years ago. Now the OECD says that Canada's real GDP growth will be last among its member nations until 2060. Wi…
Read full speech →Orders of the Day
Madam Speaker, I think my kids might have stayed up to watch this, so I will just say goodnight to them, Davie and Cooper. The Auditor General has called into question almost $400 million of payments out of this fund. That either went as a matter of conflict of interest and self-dealing, or to recipients who were ineligible to receive the funds in the first place. The sheer size of this boondoggle…
Read full speech →Orders of the Day
Madam Speaker, artificial intelligence is getting so good. That cannot be real, what this member just asked. Do we have confidence in the RCMP? Of course we do, but let us remember the record of the government: not waiving cabinet confidence with respect to the SNC-Lavalin and not waiving cabinet confidence with respect to the invocation of the Emergencies Act, which by and large ended up preventi…
Read full speech →Orders of the Day
Madam Speaker, I thank my friend kindly. I serve with him on the finance committee, and he does an excellent job on that committee. We have a great working relationship. He raises a very interesting point. The myriad of separate funds, boards of directors and organizations that give money out invite conflicts of interest and corruption. We should reconsider having all of these organizations and in…
Read full speech →Orders of the Day
Madam Speaker, the question from my hon. colleague was a very good one, and I will quite simply say that if anyone breaks the law, there should be consequences. If anyone breaches the Conflict of Interest Act, there should be consequences. If anyone breaches the public trust under the Criminal Code, they should be charged. It does not matter to me what party a person belongs to. It does not matter…
Read full speech →Orders of the Day
Madam Speaker, we are entering a culture of corruption, maybe even a culture of kleptocracy. What we are overseeing here are well-connected Liberal insiders who have the inside track to government programs. We see self-dealing. The Auditor General could not have been more clear. There are 186 examples of conflict of interest.
Read full speech →Orders of the Day
Madam Speaker, it is an absolute pleasure to rise this evening and to see you in the chair. I hope that over the course of my speech, I will be able to elicit a smile or chuckle, because that is a little thing we have going. Before I start, I will put government members on notice. If they are going to make accusations during questions and comments that the parliamentary privilege motion offends th…
Read full speech →Orders of the Day
Madam Speaker, I invited the member, before my speech started, to bring up a quote or fact he could rely on and he did none of that. He could not even name an expert who would back up his point. He just says there are experts who might, like maybe lawyers in the Conservative caucus. There are a lot of lawyers in the Liberal caucus, and they have been real quiet on what it means to be in a conflict…
Read full speech →Oral Questions
Mr. Speaker, the government loves to tout its economic record, but the results are simply underwhelming. Canada has the worst housing inflation among its peers and the worst performance in per capita income among the G7. The gross fixed capital formation has not increased in a decade, and R and D spending as a per cent of GDP is at its lowest point in 20 years. It is no wonder young Canadians and …
Read full speech →Oral Questions
Mr. Speaker, I am not surprised that the minister is not persuaded by my comments, but perhaps she might listen to economist Trevor Tombe, who wrote, “If Canada had simply kept pace with the U.S. over the past two years, our economy would be 8.5 percent larger.” That is $6,200 per person richer we would be. Trevor Tombe says that this is an incentive for Canadians and businesses to move south of t…
Read full speech →Routine Proceedings
With regard to the Underused Housing Tax (UHT) that came into effect on January 1, 2022, broken down by year: (a) how many UHT returns have been (i) filed by taxpayers, (ii) filed and then reviewed by the Canada Revenue Agency (CRA); (b) how many UHT returns reviewed by the CRA in (a)(ii) had no amounts owing, in total and percentage; (c) what is the total amount of the UHT assessed; (d) what is t…
Read full speech →Routine Proceedings
With regard to the recovery of overpayments and fraudulently obtained payments of the various COVID-19 related financial relief programs put in place by the government, broken down by the various COVID-19 related financial relief programs: (a) what are the Canada Revenue Agency's (CRA) (i) total expenditures to date, (ii) expected expenditures in the future, on recovering the payments; (b) how man…
Read full speech →Routine Proceedings
With regard to the Canada Emergency Response Benefit (CERB), broken down by department, agency, Crown corporation, or other government entity: (a) which departments, agencies, Crown corporations, or other government entities conducted a review or requested a review by another Government of Canada entity to ensure no possible fraudulent claims for the CERB; (b) if such a review was conducted, how m…
Read full speech →Routine Proceedings
With regard to vessel registrations, broken down by year since January 1, 2016: (a) how many pleasure crafts, broken down by new and used, were registered in Canada that had a total sales price (i) below $250,000, (ii) between $250,000 and $500,000, (iii) above $500,000 up to $1 million, (iv) above $1 million?
Read full speech →Routine Proceedings
moved for leave to introduce Bill S-258, An Act to amend the Canada Revenue Agency Act (reporting on unpaid income tax). Mr. Speaker, it is a pleasure to rise in the chamber to introduce a bill from the Senate, from Senator Downe. This bill would do three things. First, it would amend the Canada Revenue Agency Act to require that the Canada Revenue Agency list all those individuals who have been c…
Read full speech →Routine Proceedings
Mr. Speaker, I have one petition to table today. It is on behalf of residents who are upset with Parks Canada's decision to abandon the replacement of the Boundary Road swing bridge, which had been in place since 1902. The Boundary Road swing bridge provides an essential route of transportation that residents of Bolsover use on a regular basis. It is also more efficient for first responders and is…
Read full speech →Government Orders
Madam Speaker, we would like a recorded division.
Read full speech →Government Orders
Madam Speaker, we request a recorded vote, but you can apply this result to the next 14 that you are about to read.
Read full speech →Government Orders
Madam Speaker, we need another recorded vote.
Read full speech →Oral Questions
Mr. Speaker, farmers, fishers, families and physicians will all be impacted by this tax. The government either did not know this was the case or did not care. Had the government actually taken the time to ask StatsCan, it might have found out that almost 50% of the people impacted by this tax, otherwise, make less than $100,000 a year. Why does the government continue to insist on purposely mislea…
Read full speech →Statements By Members
Mr. Speaker, the legend of the butter tart can be traced back to Quebec in the late 1600s, but the first documented recipe came in Simcoe County, in Barrie, in 1900. The butter tart is truly a national treasure, and this Saturday in Midland, we will celebrate these little sugar pies as tens of thousands of enthusiasts will descend upon downtown in search of the perfect tart. They come in every sha…
Read full speech →Government Orders
Madam Speaker, I want to commend my fellow colleague for giving a speech in which he appropriately holds the government to account. He did not mention the official opposition once, but he appropriately placed relevant criticism at the feet of the government for its delay in bringing the bill forward. As such, I do not have much of a question, but I have more or less a comment to thank the hon. mem…
Read full speech →Oral Questions
Mr. Speaker, on April 16, the Liberals announced that they were increasing taxes on the investments of Canadians through an increase to the capital gains tax. That tax is supposed to take effect three weeks from today and Canadians have not seen the legislation yet. One wonders what the government is doing over there. When will the government show small businesses, families, farmers, entrepreneurs…
Read full speech →Government Orders
Mr. Speaker, I understand my colleague is also a student of parliamentary procedure. My other colleague, the member for Calgary Nose Hill, outlined a very good argument on why she believes this bill may end up back in litigation at the Supreme Court to test its constitutionality. I wonder if the member would like to opine on that member's speech or, as has been the case for much of tonight, the fa…
Read full speech →Routine Proceedings
With regard to phone lines paid for by the government, broken down by cellular line versus traditional landline, for each part of the question: (a) how many phone lines was the government paying for as of April 1, 2024; (b) how many of the phone lines are dormant; (c) how many of the phone lines are active but have not been used or have not had any activity in the last year; (d) how many of the ph…
Read full speech →Government Orders
Mr. Speaker, I very much enjoyed working with my friend at the finance committee. I think he asked a very relevant question. The short answer is that, yes, it definitely shows the incompetence of the government because, every few months, the Liberals see a shiny new bauble and decide they are going to change the Competition Act. One would think that the Liberals have had enough time, after being i…
Read full speech →Government Orders
Mr. Speaker, the hon. member likes to talk about wasting money, but the NDP members are supporting the government for incredible amounts of corporate welfare. The NDP has chosen to support this bill with tons of corporate welfare in it and has chosen to support a budget that has tons of corporate welfare in it, but it has only a pittance for those with disabilities. They are turning their backs on…
Read full speech →Government Orders
Mr. Speaker, I regret to interrupt this debate, but I believe I have a matter that is pressing and important, which I need to bring to your attention at the earliest opportunity. It relates to an answer I received through an inquiry of ministry, Question No. 2221, in which I partially ask for information from the Canada Revenue Agency. The question I asked reads: With regard to the Canada Revenue …
Read full speech →Government Orders
Madam Speaker, I am very proud to be from Simcoe North. As I was mentioning, at a time when Canadians are facing an affordability crisis, the government's stated policy objective is to make energy more expensive. We are the only country on the planet that has increased the cost of energy through direct carbon tax increases and now also through an indirect increase by imposing additional taxes on p…
Read full speech →Government Orders
Mr. Speaker, I do not know what happens in the Liberal caucus, but we have a lot of individual members here who have individual aspirations, individual reasons for how they vote and individual reasons for why they feel compelled to speak. The reason I am speaking tonight is that the energy bills of the people of Nova Scotia are going to go up as soon as this bill passes. I think it is irresponsibl…
Read full speech →Government Orders
Madam Speaker, it is always a pleasure to rise in this chamber. Before I start my remarks on the bill, I seek the Speaker's indulgence for just a moment. I was notified earlier today that a dear friend and former colleague of mine, Matthew Vaccari, had passed away. He succumbed to cancer. He leaves behind two children and his wife, Heather. Matt and I worked very closely together at Canada Life. I…
Read full speech →Government Orders
Madam Speaker, you are tough but fair, and I appreciate you, wholeheartedly, for your very wonderful ruling. I will continue.
Read full speech →Routine Proceedings
With regard to taxation, for the last tax year for which statistics are available: for each federal tax, (i) what is the name of the tax, (ii) how much did it cost to administer, (iii) how many employees or full-time equivalents were assigned to administer the tax, (iv) how much revenue was received from the tax?
Read full speech →Routine Proceedings
With regard to correspondence, written or electronic, received by the Canada Revenue Agency (CRA) from 2016 to 2024, broken down by year: (a) what was the total amount of correspondence received by the CRA; (b) what was the average length in days for a complete response, excluding the acknowledgement of receipt reply; (c) how many and what percentages of final responses took (i) over six months, (…
Read full speech →Routine Proceedings
With regard to the Canada Revenue Agency (CRA) and the objection process, broken down by fiscal year from 2015-16 to 2023-24: (a) what was, or is, the total budget for all CRA objection-related operations; (b) what was, or is, the total employee count for all CRA objection-related operations; (c) how many taxpayers filed objections; (d) what was the total of outstanding federal tax dollars in disp…
Read full speech →