Parliamentary Speeches

Mr. Speaker, I will bring forward a question and a comment. My comment is that, in 2024, I was part of the status of women committee, and Cait Alexander, a very vibrant and strong woman, came forward to tell her story. Unfortunately the Liberals decided to shut her down. She did not have the opportunity to explain why she felt the law that we want to bring forward would help protect women from violence. I would like to ask this: What can we do to ensure that the Liberal government does not shut us down again?

Mr. Speaker, it is nice to see you in the chair again; welcome back. Communities across York Region are facing a surge in violent crime, leaving my constituents terrified for their safety. The crime statistics in York Region are staggering and are an example of the trend that has occurred throughout all of Canada. Here are the stats from a York Region police report. From 2020 to 2024, failures to appear in court were up 182%. Bail violations and breaches were up 30%. Home invasions increased 82%. Residential break-and-enters were up 50%. Carjackings soared a staggering 305%. Theft of motor vehicles rose 127%. Overall, crime in York Region is up 58%. These numbers are more than statistics. I rise on today's “three strikes and you're out” law after my community has recently been devastated by the Liberals' soft-on-crime policy. In the past three weeks, the residents of Vaughan have experienced seven shootings. I met with my constituents in King—Vaughan who presented a letter signed by hundreds of their neighbours concerned by the devastating increase in violence happening within the riding. They expressed their outrage after the senseless murder of Abdul Aleem Farooqi. He was a husband and a father of four, described by his family as a hero after he was murdered in front of his children during a violent home invasion. No family should ever endure this kind of tragedy, yet in Canada today, these stories have become far too common. I will share with the House the words of my constituents directly, as their pleading deserves to be heard in the chamber. The note states, “We write to you not only as your constituents, but as terrified families, parents and neighbours. Our community is reeling from the tragic and senseless murder of a father of four, an unthinkable loss that has left a family destroyed and a neighbourhood traumatized. But this was not a one-off event. It is the devastating peak of a violent wave overtaking everyone in King—Vaughan. Our homes are being broken into repeatedly, shamelessly, without fear of consequence. Our seniors are being robbed in broad daylight. Our streets are no longer safe for our children. This is not a blip. This is a crisis. And this is not the Canada we knew.” They go on to outline what they need. Number one was real protection, to start at home. Number two was to support law enforcement and coordinate, fund and prioritize Canadian safety. What Conservatives are putting forward today would address exactly what my constituents stated as the greatest need. Number three was that there needs to be no more second chances for criminals. A person who invades someone's home should never walk the streets again. There is no such thing as a non-violent break-in, and the very act of entering someone's sanctuary uninvited is an act of psychological and physical warfare. We require victim-first policies; the rights of criminals must never come before the rights of law-abiding Canadians. We need real laws with real consequences. We need to stop putting Canadians last in our country and start protecting the people who live here, work here and pay taxes here. This is not about politics; this is about the basic human right to safety in our own homes, on our streets and in our daily lives. We are grieving. We are angry. We are done waiting. On behalf of my community, I rise on this motion to demand action from the government because if we are not safe in our own homes, then nothing else matters. The violence spans across the many communities in my riding. Yesterday, police arrested two of three men charged in two armed home invasions who were already out on bail. I met with Chief Jim MacSween of York Regional Police just last week, when he reported that over 1,300 individuals in our region are out on bail. I will repeat that. York region has a population of 1.2 million individuals, and 1,300 are out on bail. As he stated plainly in our meeting, “Bail needs to be reformed”. These repeat offenders are free on our streets while families in our communities continue to live in fear, and this is not unique to King—Vaughan. Across Canada, various other communities are seeing the same patterns of violence while being told that their safety is secondary to the so-called rights of these ruthless criminals. We hear about stabbings, shootings and extortion on a daily basis in the House and in our communities. If the government took meaningful action on bail reform, as the Prime Minister has promised, and if repeat violent offenders faced real consequences like the ones we are suggesting with this “three strikes and you're out” law instead of the Liberal revolving-door system on bail, Abdul Aleem Farooqi might still be alive today. Kleinburg families might not have to endure these home invasions. This motion is not only one of necessity but one of urgency. After 10 years of the Liberal government, Canadians have never been so at risk. The government had the chance to act. The Prime Minister himself promised bail reform, but instead of delivering reform that Canadians so desperately needed, he walked away for the summer and returned to the House with nothing. Canadians were promised safety; instead, they received another Liberal Prime Minister who is more concerned with criminals than the victims they terrorize, empty words with no actions and a justice system that continues to let violent offenders run rampant on our streets. The Liberal government has weakened our justice system at every turn. With Bill C-5, it repealed mandatory jail time for serious gun crime. With Bill C-75, it let repeat violent offenders right back onto our streets with devastating consequences for families. Families in King—Vaughan and across the country have already paid the ultimate price for the government's inaction. Canadians are living in fear while repeat violent offenders roam free. This is a question of basic safety, justice and common sense. Canadians deserve a government that keeps its promise and protects its citizens. They deserve laws, like this, that will hold repeat violent offenders accountable, not a revolving-door system that allows them back on our streets. Canadians deserve to feel safe in their own homes, and constituents in King—Vaughan and countless Canadians across this country are demanding action. We have all been elected to represent Canadians and provide them with the safety they deserve. The time for action is now. No more empty promises from the same Liberal government.

Mr. Speaker, that was one of Cait Alexander's concerns when she came to committee. She made that exact point about the Jordan law. Her partner, who brutally left her for dead, got off because of the Jordan law, and it was not the first time. We need to make sure that these cases are swiftly brought to the attention of the judges and that these criminals and these scum-buckets are left to stay and rot in jail.

Mr. Speaker, I recently did a ride-along with a police officer, and these are comments that police officers have shared with me: Criminals are laughing at us. They are not even resisting arrest. Why? It is because they know that weak laws created by a weak Liberal government are going to allow them to get out. Why would they care? We need to ensure that police officers have the tools and the laws to protect the citizens of this country. That is not going to happen if they do not vote with us on this bail reform.

Mr. Speaker, my constituents are saying to me that they are going to go to bed with a loaded gun, in case someone comes in to hurt their family, like that criminal who pointed a gun at a four-year-old whose father paid the most courageous price by defending her with his life. I would like the member to look at this family and explain to them why he did not do the right thing. The people in my community are ready to defend their families, and they will do it at any cost.

Mr. Speaker, the Prime Minister promised to fix the Liberals' broken criminal justice system and did nothing all summer. Meanwhile, seven shootings have occurred in Vaughan in less than three weeks. A father, Abdul Aleem Farooqi, was shot dead protecting his family. Families across Canada are terrified. Repeat violent offenders are still on our streets because of weak Liberal laws like Bill C-5 and Bill C-75. It is another Liberal broken promise, another Liberal bait and switch, because the Prime Minister is just another Liberal. When will his broken promises stop?

With regard to Canada Pension Plan payments: (a) has the government conducted any analysis of (i) how much it would cost to allow individuals, who continue to pay into, and don't start collecting, Canada Pension Plan payments until an age later than 65, such as 70, to defer those payments and receive larger payment when they do start collecting Canada Pension Plan payments, (ii) any proposal similar to that outlined in (a)(i); and (b) if the answer to (a)(i) or (a)(ii) is affirmative, what are the details, including the findings and projections associated with the analysis?

With regard to government action taken following the concerns raised by the Auditor General in Report 11 "Programs to Assist Seniors": (a) what specific changes is the government making to the New Horizons for Seniors Program in response to the concerns; (b) how will the government measure the number of seniors benefitting from each of the grants provided under the New Horizons for Seniors Program and what benefits are seniors receiving; (c) what follow-up checks has the government done to ensure that New Horizons for Seniors Program grant money was spent appropriately and in accordance with the terms of the funding agreement; and (d) since January 1, 2024, how many instances have there been where the government found that New Horizons for Seniors Program grant money was not spent appropriately, and what are the details of each such instance, including the (i) recipient, (ii) location, (iii) amount of funding provided, (iv) purpose of the funding, (v) summary of how the funding was inappropriately spent, (vi) action taken by the government in response, (vii) amount of funding recovered, if applicable?

Mr. Speaker, I have a question for my hon. colleague. I listened to his speech, and he continues to discuss what happened in the past. The Liberals have been in power for 10 years. Over two million people are using food banks. Seniors are living on the street. What is happening? The housing minister's own issues in Vancouver increased homelessness for seniors by 40%. You have been in power for 10 years. What have you done to help ensure the seniors in this country, the ones who built this country, are not living on the streets?

Mr. Speaker, June is Italian Heritage Month, a time to honour the dreams and sacrifices of those who came before us. I am a proud granddaughter of Italian Canadians. My grandfather came to Canada, with hope in his heart, to build a life rooted in hard work, family and faith. I am deeply proud of my Italian roots and incredibly honoured to represent the almost 40,000 Italian Canadians in King—Vaughan who entrusted me to be their voice here in Ottawa. Auguri a tutti gli italiani qui in Canada e in Italia. Felice mese di patrimonio italiano. This is in honour of the Speaker. [Member sang in Italian]

Mr. Speaker, auto thefts are up 46%, and violent crime is up 50%. Just yesterday, York Region police arrested four suspects in a violent auto theft in Vaughan, where two of them were repeat offenders. This is a result of failed Liberal laws like Bill C-5 and Bill C-75. Even the mayor of Vaughan and the chief of York Regional Police are calling for an end to catch-and-release madness. Would any Liberal who thinks this is acceptable kindly explain this to the residents of King—Vaughan?

Madam Speaker, according to the Liberals' own housing agency, 60% of Canadians are struggling to pay down debt, and one in four are using one credit card just to pay off another. The cost of living is up 45%, job losses are up 34%, and interest rates are climbing 29%. The dream of home ownership is slipping further out of reach. Canadians are stuck living in their parents' basement. What is the Liberal government's plan to restore the hope Canadians once had? When will it table a budget so people can plan for the future?

Madam Speaker, the Liberals promised 500,000 new home starts a year, but according to a TD report, the target is completely unrealistic. Even under the most generous projections, the Liberals' plan falls dramatically short of what is needed, and now construction is falling, not rising. Let us be honest. A GST cut on homes under $1 million does nothing if there are no homes being built. When will the Liberal government stop spinning its talking points and provide a real plan for Canadians, or maybe it just does not have one?

Madam Speaker, I would like to begin by sincerely thanking residents, my family and the dedicated team in King—Vaughan for once again placing their trust in me to represent them in this House. I rise today not just to speak to Bill C-4 but to speak for those who are not mentioned in it, for those who are too often left out of our national conversation. I rise for our seniors. As shadow minister for seniors, I must highlight how this legislation fails to address the unique challenges seniors face and why this omission fails to support those who built the foundation of our nation. Bill C-4, the making life more affordable for Canadians act, is a missed opportunity. It offers tax cuts and housing rebates, but nowhere in its pages, not once, does it mention the word “seniors”, not in the context of housing, not in the context of health care, not in the context of pensions and not even in the context of affordability. Their voices, contributions and needs deserve recognition and action. Seniors are the fastest-growing demographic in this country. By 2030, nearly one in four Canadians will be over the age of 65. They are our parents, our grandparents and our neighbours. They built this country, and now too many of them are being left behind. Bill C-4's attempt at affordability falls short. The Liberals blatantly neglect seniors on fixed incomes who are struggling with soaring costs for essentials like medication, housing and care. The industrial carbon tax, which inflates prices across the board and burdens all consumers, hits seniors particularly hard, as their fixed incomes are unable to keep pace. This oversight reveals a flawed approach of prioritizing certain demographics while ignoring the vulnerable elders who face relentless financial strain without adequate support. Seniors face tough challenges today. Many live on fixed pensions that do not stretch far enough to cover rising costs for such things as medicine, rent or groceries. People with disabilities and seniors who cannot afford to feed themselves are increasingly turning to food banks. I have volunteered at seniors' homes for over a decade, and when I speak to seniors in my community, I hear day in and day out that they do not understand why their taxes and utility bills continue to go up. In Canada, seniors face a variety of challenges that are often overlooked. Access to health care and long-term care remain significant issues, worsened by the growing shortage of family doctors and specialists. As a result, many seniors are left without regular medical support, leading to preventable health complications. This often forces them to seek care in emergency rooms, placing additional strain on already overburdened hospitals and tying up critical resources. Chronic diseases, such as arthritis, cancer, heart disease, diabetes and respiratory illnesses, disproportionately affect seniors and severely impact their quality of life. Meanwhile, the rising costs of essentials, such as groceries and electricity, are particularly harsh for those living on a fixed income. Can we imagine having to choose between heating a home and buying food? Perhaps the most heartbreaking issue is loneliness and social isolation. Many seniors spend their days in solitude. Studies have shown that approximately 41% of Canadians aged 50 and older are at risk of social isolation. Up to 58% have experienced loneliness. This is not just a statistic. Rather, it is a silent epidemic that has severe mental and physical impacts. Let me talk about a senior couple in my riding, Philip and Angela. They are a retired couple in my riding. For months, they have been living in their car, not because they want to, not because they made poor choices, but because the rent on their modest apartment went up $700 a month. They sold their furniture, gave away their books and packed their lives into the trunk of a 2008 Toyota Camry. Now, every night, they park behind a grocery store, hoping not to be noticed. They take turns sleeping in the back seat. They wash in public restrooms. They eat cold meals from a can. This is not the Canada they worked for. This is not the retirement they expected, and yet Bill C-4 offers them nothing. Seniors in the GTA are very upset. They are now looking at leaving their home and trying either to live with their children or find an encampment because they cannot afford to stay in their home. Anyone who has volunteered with seniors knows that when a senior is moved out of the environment they are accustomed to, they do not survive. This is the sad reality of the Liberal mismanagement of taxpayer money that has caused the inflationary situation we all face in Canada. The bill is a patchwork of half measures. It is not a plan. It is not a vision. Conservatives pledged during the campaign that seniors who choose to work would be able to earn up to $34,000 tax-free, which is $10,000 more than the current threshold. RRSP flexibility was proposed to allow seniors to keep their savings in RRSPs until the age of 73 instead of the current mandatory withdrawal at age 71. This would give seniors more time to grow their retirement savings. For protection of retirement benefits, we also committed to keeping the retirement age at 65 and protecting benefits like old age security, the guaranteed income supplement and the Canada pension plan. The Liberal government has stolen many of our policies but has watered them down. Why not take this one, implement it word for word and assist our seniors? The measures are framed as part of broader efforts to give seniors more control over their finances and to ensure that they are not penalized for going to work if they choose to. What we need is bold action on housing; what we received was a tax cut that barely covers a week's worth of groceries. What we need is a national strategy to end homelessness; what we received was a throne speech that did not include a housing plan for seniors. The Conservative Party believes in real affordability. That means building more affordable housing, especially for seniors, so they can move into comfortable, cost-effective communities. This not only improves their quality of life and reduces isolation but also frees up existing homes for first-time homebuyers. By creating dedicated seniors housing, we can build vibrant communities where seniors live with dignity and connection, while also opening doors for younger generations to enter the housing market. A car is not a home. A parking lot is not a retirement plan. We must prioritize affordability to ensure that seniors have access to nutritious foods and a secure livelihood. This support can help reduce isolation and restore dignity. I met a senior in my riding who skips meals to afford her medication; her pension is not enough. Stories like this are common, yet Bill C-4 offers no support and no hope. This is not just a mistake; it shows that the government's priorities are wrong. The only way low-income seniors are going to afford to live is a reduction of the tax on affordability. As shadow minister of seniors, I say that the Liberal government must do better. Seniors are not asking for charity; they want fairness and dignity. After years of their contributing to Canada, the bill fails them. I call for changes to include real help for seniors or a new bill that puts them first. I would like my colleagues to imagine this: We have worked our entire life and are looking forward to a well-earned retirement, only to find that we cannot afford it. We quietly struggle to make ends meet, not wanting to burden our loved ones with our hardship. What happens when our career has moved on without us, and our income no longer covers our basic needs? This is the reality for far too many seniors. We must restore dignity to those who paved the way for us. Let us ensure—

Madam Speaker, that is an excellent question, and I do agree. The life expectancies of individuals have grown, from my time in the financial industry, from 73 years for men and 75 years for women to the late eighties, so the RRSP suggestion makes sense. We should give them more time to save money and reduce the opportunity for them to have to live on a fixed income later on in their life. As far as the budget is concerned, why do we have all these individuals, who are employed by the government, to help us do our job when the Liberals have to spend billions of dollars hiring these consultants, and at the end of the day, we get nothing for it?

Mr. Speaker, I congratulate my colleague on his successful campaign. We just celebrated, in Vaughan yesterday, a large Italian festival. One thing I am sure my colleague will agree with is that our parents and grandparents taught us to live by a budget and to understand that we cannot make a dollar and spend $1,000, yet the government refuses to present this House with a budget. How can we proceed without knowing what the end result will be?

Mr. Speaker, after nine years of the NDP-Liberals, it is just more waste and mismanagement. The Auditor General's scathing report slammed the Prime Minister's treatment of seniors. The government broke the new horizons program. There are value for money concerns with nearly half of the approved projects. In one case, the government paid $23,000 for a door in a senior's residence that was never installed. When will the Prime Minister actually start caring for seniors, end the waste and call an election?

Madam Speaker, once again, I rise in the House to speak to the privilege motion. In case anyone at home is confused about this, it is all about why we are debating this motion. Back in June, members of Parliament passed a motion demanding that all documents related to Sustainable Development Technology Canada be transferred to the RCMP for investigation within 30 days. The government did not do this. On our first day back in the fall, the opposition House leader raised a question of privilege. The Speaker of the House agreed that the government ignored an order of the House, and it has since ignored the Speaker's ruling. The government will argue that it did not ignore the ruling and did, in fact, table the requested documents. However, what it tabled was 29,000 pages of black ink. The documents were almost completely redacted. What have they redacted? What are they hiding? My colleagues and I have asked every day in the House for the Liberals to adhere to the orders of the House and turn over all the reports unredacted for the RCMP to investigate. To date, they still refuse. Why? Of course, the government is going to say that the Prime Minister's department, the Privy Council Office, has the right to redact documents. However, the act actually says that if a body such as Parliament were to order the production of documents, the Privy Act cannot be used as an excuse to redact information. Let us go back a bit. Why did the House demand that the SDTC documents be handed over to the RCMP in the first place? The Auditor General did an audit for five years of SDTC. She sampled only about half of the transactions, 226 transactions, the board approved, and the Auditor General found that 186 of the 226 transactions were conflicted. In other words, 82% of those transactions. This means that only 18% were in good faith. If our kids came home from school with a score of 18%, they would need to do some explaining. What do these conflicts of interest really mean? They mean the Liberal board members in charge of distributing funds that were meant to help Canadian companies develop and deploy sustainable technologies were funnelling money into their own pockets. Why do I say Liberal board members? It is because the chair of the board was hand-picked by the Prime Minister himself, ignoring any kind of fair hiring process. Let us start with her. She approved $390 million in funding for projects that had extremely disturbing conflicts. According to the Auditor General, the Liberals' green slush fund handed out $58 million to projects without a promise that the contribution agreement terms were met. Another $58 million went to 10 projects deemed ineligible, as they could not prove an environmental benefit or were not developing green technologies. Finally, there was $334 million in over 186 cases where SDTC board members held a conflict of interest. Here is an interesting piece of information that my colleague from South Shore—St. Margarets shared previously. The Prime Minister's far-left radical environment minister is profiting from Sustainable Development Technology Canada. One may ask how this is possible. Prior to his election, he was a paid lobbyist for a green technology investment firm called Cycle Capital. Cycle Capital is a venture capital firm that has received investments of over $200 million from the Liberal green slush fund since it was created. Remember that these funds were approved by the Prime Minister's hand-picked board members, including the environment minister's long-time personal friend Andrée-Lise Méthot. Interestingly, Andrée-Lise Méthot was not only hand-picked by the Prime Minister to sit on the board of SDTC but is also the founder and owner of Cycle Capital. However, it gets even better. During her time on the board, companies in which Cycle Capital was invested received more than $100 million of taxpayer money. These taxpayer dollars inflated the value of Cycle Capital. Since the Prime Minister and his corrupt band of merry men took office, Cycle Capital has grown from $200 million to over $600 million. Let us connect the dots. Who benefits from a company whose value is inflated by taxpayer dollars? It is shareholders, of course. Guess who continues to hold shares in Cycle Capital. It is the far-left, radical, orange suit-wearing environment minister. This is the very definition of a conflict of interest. As we all know, the tone of any organization starts at the top, and at the top of the Liberal-NDP government, the tone is corruption. As my colleague from Lambton—Kent—Middlesex stated the other day during her intervention, “The government has a pattern of giving its friends hundreds of millions of dollars, taxpayer dollars, while shirking responsibility for all it has done to destroy Canadians' livelihoods.” She took us all on a walk down scandal lane and revealed 68 of the Liberal scandals. In my previous intervention, I listed some of them and this morning I will mention a few more. I cannot possibly list all of them, as I only have 20 minutes, but here are a few. There was the pressure put on the first indigenous justice minister and attorney general, Jody Wilson-Raybould, by the Prime Minister to get Liberal donor SNC-Lavalin off the hook. He fired her when she refused to the help with the cover-up. There was the “people experience things differently” response by the Prime Minister to groping allegations. There was the WE Charity scandal, for which the Prime Minister prorogued Parliament to escape scrutiny. There was the Prime Minister's assault on an NDP member of Parliament on the floor of the House of Commons. The was export of personal protective equipment to China during a pandemic and giving hundreds of thousands of dollars in ventilator contracts to Liberal Party insider Frank Baylis. There were the fake charges against Mark Norman, the illegal invocation of the Emergencies Act and the fabrication of reasons to justify its illegal use. The was also the trampling of Canadians with horses and the seizing of Canadians' bank accounts. There was the Winnipeg lab scandal and the Public Health Agency tracking scandal. There was the rampant abuse of staff in the office of the former governor general, who was appointed by the Prime Minister. There was the Governor General's $100,000 private jet parties and the Liberals' connection to an illegal casino magnate. There were the vaccine delays, the Prime Minister's racist costumes on an official trip to India, his racist blackface costumes and the mass airport delays and cancellations. The was the decriminalization of hard drugs. There were the over 72 secret orders in council. There was the Liberals' diplomats attending a party at the Russian embassy during the Ukrainian war and the minister who gave a $17,000 contract to a Liberal-aligned media firm. There were also efforts to obtain unwarranted border searches of electronics and restrictions on online free speech. There was the $11 million in renovations to the Prime Minister's cottage, the $8 million barn built at Harrington Lake and a Jamaican vacation that cost taxpayers at least $162,000. There was the increase of the carbon tax during an energy crisis and the misinformation to Canadians about electoral reform. There was the skipping of the first National Day for Truth and Reconciliation so that the Prime Minister could go surfing in Tofino. There was the elimination of mandatory minimums for gun offences while going after law-abiding firearms owners and the Prime Minister's party in Scotland while Canadians were under lockdown. There were the failed reforms of the ATIP system and the contracts awarded to government employees without proper bids, such as those for GC Strategies for the ArriveCAN app, or, should I say, the arrive scam app. There were also the Liberal cover-ups of foreign interference and the compromised Liberal MPs who continue to sit in the House of Commons. There was the Bernardo and Magnotta prisoner transfer, which is a huge one since there has been a 75% increase in violence against women in this country due to the Liberals' misguided laws. There was the former Nazi scandal invitation and his recognition in the House of Commons, and the delay in recognizing the IRGC as a terrorist organization. We have skyrocketing debt, skyrocketing inflation, skyrocketing addictions and skyrocketing overdose deaths. After nine years of the Prime Minister, everything is broken. He has skyrocketed the debt to the point where we are spending more on the interest of the debt than we do on health care. He has also skyrocketed the cost of groceries, sending more than two million people per month to food banks. He has skyrocketed crime with his catch-and-release bail and the elimination of mandatory minimum sentences for major crimes. Auto theft is up 200%, violence against women is up 75%, and the Prime Minister's legalization of hard drugs has seen the pop-up of drug dens near children's schools and playgrounds and has caused a massive number of overdose deaths. Now we have the Liberals' attempt to bribe us with our own money in the form of a $250 cheque to those who earn $150,000 net income. I repeat, that is net income, meaning after-tax dollars, but there is nothing for those who truly need supports. Here is what the Liberals forgot to tell us: They will borrow more cash and print more money, which by their own admission will lead to higher inflation and devalue our dollar. More borrowing means interest rates are likely to stay higher for longer. We are already seeing evidence of this in the bond market. Borrowing more means our kids and grandkids will foot the bill. This is simply short-term gain for long-term pain. If the Prime Minister is so confident in his economic policies, why does he not let the people decide and call an election? He can run on his failed economic ideology, while common-sense Conservatives would run on our common-sense plan to axe the tax, build the homes, fix the budget and stop the crime. Axing the tax would permanently lower the price of gas, groceries and home heating. We would build the homes by axing the sales tax on new homes, sparking 30,000 extra homes built each year and effectively lowering prices. This week the member for Winnipeg North asked why we should listen to “the self-serving leader of the Conservative Party". I really hope the member would take some time to reflect on his own party and the actions of his leader. He may come to realize it is the Liberal leader, the Prime Minister, who is self-serving, as evidenced by the list of growing scandals designed to line his pockets and those of his friends. It is the Conservative Party that cares about Canadians, all Canadians, not just powerful insiders. Perhaps he and all members on the other side of the House will eventually realize the words coming out of their mouths do not match the actions of their party. They have spent millions and millions of taxpayer dollars on their friends, while Canadians struggle to make ends meet. I imagine the good that $400 million could have done, the deserving lives it could have changed, and I ask this: Is it not the very definition of self-serving to ignore the ruling of the House to provide documents that could self-incriminate? Once again, the members on that side of the House like to project their character flaws onto us. As the Liberals' popularity plummets in the polls, they continue to gaslight Canadians. What they do not seem to realize is that Canadians have had enough. Canadians need a common-sense plan that puts Canadians first. Common-sense Conservatives would put Canada first. We would build our military and secure our borders. Canadians want a prime minister with the brains and backbone to stand up for this country, a leader who knows how to play chess, not checkers. In the words of Sir Wilfrid Laurier, “Canada first...and Canada always.” It is time to stop the corruption, axe the tax to help all Canadians and call a carbon tax election today.

Madam Speaker, I have a question for the hon. member across the way. Earlier in his speech, he indicated that two past leaders of the Conservative Party left the party. Something is interesting, and maybe he can help me understand this. We have been canvassing in the GTA, and I am hearing the opposite from constituents who are saying to me that the Liberal Party has left them, and they no longer feel comfortable that the Liberal Party can support them. They want a carbon tax election so that our common-sense leader can make things right and get rid of the Liberals once and for all.

Madam Speaker, I am a little concerned about those questions because let us look at the facts. Number one, the Liberals are bribing us with our own money. Number two, if they feel they have done such a great job for Canadians, can they explain to Canadians watching today why over two million Canadians have to use food banks? My grandfather came here in 1950 and food banks were not even in existence because people could work and pay for their own groceries without having to depend on food banks. We need to take this country back and the only way we are going to do it is with the common-sense leader of the common-sense Conservatives for the Canadian people.

Madam Speaker, that is an excellent point. I want to say a few things. First of all, we have a food bank in my riding called the Sai Dham Food Bank that I happen to assist in many different ways. It serves 4,000 seniors every single month by delivering food baskets. In one month alone, it delivered 5.42 million meals. That is unheard of in this country. We need to ensure we help the most vulnerable. Let me ask another question. Do the members of Parliament need that $250? No. The government is bribing us with our own tax dollars. It is going to shoot up inflation and we are all going to have to pay for it, including the most vulnerable. We need to get back to the basics. For instance, we need to stick to a budget. The Prime Minister said that “the budget will balance itself”. He needs a lesson. The budget does not balance itself; it is our responsibility to ensure that we budget.

Madam Speaker, the $250 is our tax dollars. We are going to have to pay it back. As far as the member's claim that he wants to help people who need the money, all of us MPs who will be receiving the $250 do not need it. It should go to people who need it: people with disabilities and seniors who cannot afford to feed themselves and are going to food banks. I have volunteered at a seniors home for over a decade and when I speak to seniors in my community I hear it day in and day out: They do not understand why their taxes and utility bills continue to go up. It is because of the carbon tax. The only way to bring these issues to light is to reduce and get rid of the carbon tax and to call a carbon tax election now and let the common-sense Conservatives with our common-sense leader lead this country back.

Madam Speaker, I visit seniors in my community on a regular basis and I am hearing exactly the same thing as this member. Recently we were canvassing in the GTA and the seniors I met were very upset. They are now looking at leaving their homes and either trying to live with their children or find an encampment because they cannot afford to stay in their homes. Anyone who has volunteered with seniors knows that when a senior is moved out of the environment they are accustomed to, they do not survive. That is the sad reality of the Liberal mismanagement of money that has caused this inflationary situation we all face in Canada. My seniors and the seniors I have spoken to in this country have all said the same thing: that we need a common-sense Conservative to lead us back to the way things were. That is going to happen with our leader. Call an election and we will make it happen.

Madam Speaker, seniors need our help. I agree with that, but what the member fails to remember is that the Liberals, along with the NDP, have been in power for nine years. They have done absolutely nothing to ensure homes are built for our seniors, for our children and for people who cannot afford it. Maybe instead of voting with the Liberals, the New Democrats should look into their own souls and decide what is right for this country. I will tell members what is right for this country: a common-sense Conservative to bring back common sense for the Canadian people.

Madam Speaker, recently, I had the pleasure and the honour of canvassing in the member for Vaughan—Woodbridge's riding with Michael Guglielmin and the member for Lakeland, Alberta. When we were knocking at the doors, that is not what we heard. The member's constituents do not trust him. He continues to say that he wants to cross the floor. Well, believe it or not, Conservatives do not want him. Why is he continuing to bribe taxpayers with their own money? The owners of the restaurants he has mentioned, which I frequent, are fed up with the current Liberal government. They want a carbon tax election. I will tell members that Michael Guglielmin will be the next MP for Vaughan—Woodbridge.

Mr. Speaker, yesterday in the status of women committee, we heard testimony from Esther, a brave young woman from Nova Scotia. She came to Parliament to share her heart-wrenching story of the murder of her aunt by a repeat offender out on conditional release. She pleaded with the committee and the government to repeal Bill C-5 and Bill C-75, which have become known as the catch-and-release and hug-a-thug policies of the Liberal-NDP government. Although the leader of the NDP claims to have ripped up his contract with the Liberals, he supports these soft-on-crime policies that have led to a 75% increase in violent crimes against women. Every day the Prime Minister remains in power, it is because of the leader of the NDP, who voted to support the carbon tax 24 times rather than to support women.

Madam Speaker, I just want to remind the House that I am continuing my intervention from last night where I was reading into the record correspondence I received from Stephanie. These are her words. “I am watching clips of what is going on in the House of Commons and in Parliament all the time and we are going in circles. It does not matter how many scandals or how much corruption has taken place with these [NDP-Liberals]. They are getting away with all of them. It is as if they are completely above the law. What will it take for an election to happen? How much more damage will this [Prime Minister] and his little sinister sidekicks do between now and the next election? “We are all reeling here about what has happened to a member of our work family in our community. Do we collectively stop giving a cent to the CRA? Do we have any power at all? Is it all a ruse? “I'm counting on the leader of the Conservatives for change. I'm deeply concerned and devastated by what has happened to my country and what a mess my kids now have to navigate. I have a message for the Liberal-NDP MPs in Ottawa next time you see them, if you will kindly oblige me. 'To all of you sitting on the Liberals' side, you, who are fully aware by now of the criminal acts and corruption of several members of this government. You made a promise to your constituents to represent them in Ottawa, yet you are sitting here today saying and doing absolutely nothing. Somehow, I don't think the people who elected you would be okay with $400 million unaccounted for and the multitude of scandals that have taken place with the government in the last nine years, and brazenly stolen tax dollars on the backs of hard-working Canadians who put their trust in you. “The member from Vaughan—Woodbridge even tried to gaslight Canadians by telling them that this is their decade and they have never had it so good. Are you kidding me? Have you actually spoken to anyone in Woodbridge recently? I have and I beg to differ. Take a good hard look at yourselves. Did you not go into this line of work for the love of country and your communities? I find it very hard to believe that every single one of you went into this to steal, lie and deceive. It can't be possible. Yet here we are. Your collective inactions are complicit, and your complicit behaviour is treasonous. Shame on all of you.” The Liberals will be held to account when the next government takes over and has to clean up the mess they have created. The correspondence from Stephanie continues: “[To the] cowards wanting a secret ballot because you know that what is going on is wrong and you are not willing to speak the truth, you should be calling their crimes out from the rooftops in full light of day. We are looking, we are listening and we are watching. We will not forget. What do I say to my friends and family to give them hope and convince them to cast their vote despite their fatigue and frustrations? We need inspiration here. We are tired, we are sad and we don't recognize our country anymore. You and the leader of the Conservative Party got my vote. Please do not let us down. Please, continue to fight hard and give us hope. “With all my heart and sincerity, Stephanie.” I hear her anger, I feel her frustration and I share her concerns. She is not alone. I hope the Prime Minister and all the supporters in the NDP-Liberal government, who have remained quiet, heard her as well. She has touched so many issues and concerns in her letter that are shared by many Canadians. Crime, lack of transparency and continuous scandals and corruption have led to their fatigue and frustration. If Stephanie is watching, here is our promise to her. Conservatives will axe the tax, which will make the cost of everything more affordable. Conservatives will build the homes so that our children can realize their dream of home ownership. Conservatives will fix the budget and stop the crime in the hope that no other little boy will ever have to witness his father being shot and feel it was his fault. I will leave the NDP-Liberals with a sentiment of British philosopher Edmund Burke that has been quoted by many others over the years, “The only thing necessary for the triumph of evil is for good men [and good women] to do nothing.” These are the words of constituents from my riding of King—Vaughan.