Oral Questions
Mr. Speaker, what the hon. colleague is talking about is the Canada child benefit that is helping nine out of 10 Canadian families. It is helping that single mom pay for groceries. It is helping that family make sure its kids have access to winter clothing. On this side of the House, we will continue to support Canadians as they go through difficult economic times. The Conservatives keep talking a…
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Mr. Speaker, today is a historic day. This morning I introduced Bill C-35, an act respecting early learning and child care in Canada. Our child care plan is working. Fees are being reduced across the country, new spaces are being built and women are getting back to work. This legislation matters. Let me remind the House that the leader of the Conservatives boasted in 2015 that his government had p…
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Mr. Speaker, we have created and are creating a Canada where Canadians are there for each other and where the government is there for them in their times of need. At the height of the pandemic, nine million Canadians accessed CERB. We will not apologize for being there for Canadians when they needed us. We start from a place of compassion and from a place of trust. That does not mean there are not…
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Mr. Speaker, I hope the blues are checked. It was something that I heard as I was preparing to answer the question. It shocked me greatly. We do not use that kind of language in this House. I am quite troubled by it.
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Mr. Speaker, I rise on a point of order. It troubles me greatly that during question period, while the member for Fredericton was asking me a question, the member for Haldimand—Norfolk called her an anti-Semite. I would ask that she withdraw that comment and apologize for it. It is unacceptable to say such things in this place.
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Mr. Speaker, what Canadians cannot afford is bad financial advice from the Conservatives opposite. If Canadians had taken their advice and invested in crypto, they would have seen their savings wiped out. Instead, on this side of the House, we have been there to support Canadians. The Canada child benefit has lifted over 450,000 children out of poverty since 2015. Two million fewer Canadians are l…
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moved for leave to introduce Bill C-35, An Act respecting early learning and child care in Canada. (Motions deemed adopted, bill read the first time and printed)
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Mr. Speaker, actions speak louder than words. When Canadians needed us, and as they continue to need us, we have been there for Canadians. Nine million Canadians, at the height of the pandemic, accessed CERB. In fact, the Conservatives actually supported putting CERB out there, because we came together as a country. Unfortunately, as we are going through the recovery, the Conservatives have voted …
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Mr. Speaker, the difference between us and the Conservatives is that we start from a place of trust with Canadians. We trust that when Canadians need support, they can access it. We trust that when Canadians are in a vulnerable position, they will have access to the benefits and supports they need. Unlike the Conservatives, we start from a place of trust. That is how we are operating with the Cana…
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Mr. Speaker, it has been a pleasure to work with the hon. member and so many colleagues in the House to deliver early learning and affordable child care across this country. In fact we have reduced fees by 50% from coast to coast to coast, which means that more families are able to afford child care and more women are entering into the workforce. In fact, women's workforce participation is at an a…
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Mr. Speaker, the difference between us and the Conservatives is that on this side of the House, we have confidence in Canadians. We understand that less fortunate Canadians need this help. We will provide them with help for dental care, housing, and early childhood and child care services. We have confidence in Canadians, and we will be there to support them today and in the future.
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Mr. Speaker, we took important action when we understood that the high cost of living was having an impact on Canadians. In fact, yesterday the Financial Post noted that our child care policy has been a success. It said, “government policy has played a role in getting women back in the workforce...especially when it comes to child care.... Women feel more confident going back into the workforce be…
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Mr. Speaker, I would like to thank my hon. colleague for the question. For too long, families have had to pay high monthly child care fees and languish on long waiting lists when too few quality child care spaces were available. Last week, we were pleased to announce that the Government of Canada and the Government of Nova Scotia will cut regulated child care fees in half, on average, for families…
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Mr. Speaker, on this side of the House, we remain committed to supporting people get out of poverty. In fact, we understand how difficult life is right now, which is why we have put forward numerous measures to help the most vulnerable Canadian. However, if the Leader of the Opposition is indeed sincere in his desire to help lift Canadians out of poverty, he would have voted for measures like the …
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Mr. Speaker, last Thursday I was in London, Ontario, with the Prime Minister, to announce that the Canada dental benefit was open for applications. I had the opportunity to talk with families about how important this is for them and for their children. It is $1,300, over two years, to make sure low income kids go to the dentist. The Conservatives have had opportunities to support vulnerable Canadi…
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Mr. Speaker, the Conservatives have demonstrated time and time again that, when it comes to supporting Canadians, they vote against them. They voted against early learning and child care, for which fees are reducing by 50% from coast to coast to coast across the country. That is thousands of dollars in the pockets of Canadian families. They voted against the Canada dental benefit, which provides u…
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Mr. Speaker, to the contrary, on this side of the House we understand how hard life is for Canadians right now, which is why we have put forward significant benefits to help Canadians. Whether that be the Canada child benefit, the Canada dental benefit, the Canada housing benefit or an increase to the Canada workers benefit, we are there for Canadians at every single stage of their lives because w…
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Mr. Speaker, we are collaborating with workers, unions, organizations and businesses in order to introduce reforms to the EI system. I am also working with my hon. colleague and all the Bloc Québécois members to ensure that we address individual cases where there have been delays with people's employment insurance. As for seasonal workers, we are working with the Government of Quebec. We will cont…
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Mr. Speaker, 450,000 children have been lifted out of poverty since we took office in 2015. We have brought in early learning and child care agreements across the country. By the end of this year, families from coast to coast to coast will receive reduced child care fees by up to 50%. We have several measures that we have put forward, whether it is the Canada dental benefit, the Canada child benef…
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Mr. Speaker, I really do believe it is the Conservatives who need to look within and find some compassion. They have voted against measure after measure that has been there to support our lowest income Canadians, families and seniors who have been struggling. In fact, 450,000 children have been lifted out of poverty. We know there is more work to do, but that is why, in the fall economic statement…
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Mr. Speaker, do members know what is cruel? What is cruel is talking about the spending that we did in the pandemic that supported millions of Canadians. The Canada emergency response benefit helped millions of Canadians. The Canada emergency wage subsidy helped millions of Canadians. We were there for Canadians in their time of need, and we continue to be there. What we have not seen is the Conse…
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Mr. Speaker, my hon. colleague talks about some of the difficult choices Canadians have to face. On this side of the House, we understand that. That is why we have been there continuously for the last seven years to help Canadians in need. My hon. colleague and her caucus have a chance today to support the fall economic statement. It would help Canadian families with the enhanced Canada workers be…
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Mr. Speaker, today I was really pleased to announce the $400-million community services recovery fund for the charitable and not-for-profit sector here in Canada. We are going to be working with national funders, the Red Cross, community foundations in Canada and the United Way to deliver this to folks and organizations on the front lines of delivering the most important services right across this…
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Mr. Speaker, just because the Conservatives repeat something three times does not make it true. Let us focus on the facts. When it comes to supporting Canadians, on this side of the House we have been there, and the Conservatives have voted against supporting Canadians every step of the way. When it comes to inflation, Canada is lower than the United States, it is lower than the European Union, an…
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Mr. Speaker, first of all, what my hon. colleague said is absolutely false. There is no tripling of taxes that is coming forward. When the Conservatives talk about compassion, they should look in the mirror. They have had several opportunities over the past couple of weeks to support families in need, whether it was the Canada dental benefit, which they voted against; whether it was the Canada hou…
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Mr. Speaker, the members opposite like to pretend they support Canadians, but over the past seven years we have seen time and again that when there are actual opportunities for them to support hard-working Canadians, they do not. Instead of supporting Canadians through the Canada child benefit, which puts thousands of dollars into the pockets of lower-income families, they voted against it. Instea…
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Mr. Speaker, I would like to thank my hon. colleague from Brampton South, who has been a tireless advocate for universal child care in this country. I am really pleased to report to the House that Ontario has had 92% of licensed child care providers sign on. That means families are receiving rebates of up to 25% dating back to April 1, and as of December 31 they will receive a 50% reduction in fee…
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Mr. Speaker, as my hon. colleague knows full well, over the past seven years, there have been several occasions when we brought in measures to keep more money in Canadians' pockets. It is a shame, but the Conservatives voted against those measures every time, whether we are talking about climate-related cheques or benefits for Canadians. There have been several occasions when they could have suppo…
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Mr. Speaker, my hon. colleague talks about leaving money in Canadians' pockets, but every time we introduce measures to give more money to Canadians, the Conservatives vote against them. With respect to climate action, we return more money to the provinces where pollution pricing is in place.
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Mr. Speaker, it is hard to stomach what the Conservatives are saying, because at every opportunity when they could have supported Canadians in need, they voted against it. Our record on this side is that almost two million Canadians, including 450,000 children, have been lifted out of poverty over the last seven years. We have supported Canadians with the Canada child benefit, the Canada housing b…
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Mr. Speaker, on this side of the House, for the past seven years, we have demonstrated compassion and responsibility. We have been there for Canadians and Canadian families, whether it is through the Canada child benefit, whether it is through child care, whether it is through the Canada dental plan or housing. What we have not done is provide completely irresponsible financial advice that would l…
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Mr. Speaker, what my hon. colleague said is absolutely false. Our government is actually supporting Canadian families. Thanks to the Canada child benefit, that mother of six gets thousands of dollars a year to support her children. What is the Conservatives' plan? Cuts. What will they cut? They are not telling, but it will no doubt be something that will hurt Canadian families.
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Mr. Speaker, there are two million Canadians, including 450,000 children, no longer in poverty under this government than when the Conservatives were in power. They had the opportunity to actually vote on measures that would help Canadian families, like the Canada dental benefit, like the Canadian housing benefit, like child care for families from coast to coast to coast, or perhaps the Canada wor…
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Mr. Speaker, the Leader of the Opposition was honest with Canadians, the Canadians he is not going to be supporting through this fall economic statement. He told them right away. He told students, for example, that he is not going to support the permanent elimination of interest on student loans. He told the lowest-income workers that he is not going to support the continuation of the Canada worke…
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Mr. Speaker, let us talk about what the government is spending on. We are spending on the Canada dental benefit, which is going to support hundreds of thousands of Canadian children access to dental care. We are spending on the Canada housing benefit, which is helping the lowest-income Canadians pay their rent. To suggest that is inflationary is absolutely absurd. Then we are spending on the Canad…
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Mr. Speaker, helping low-income Canadians pay for basic necessities is not inflationary. We know that the Conservatives talk a big game, but they are not actually there, when the measures are on the floor, to vote in support. When it came to the Canada child benefit, what did they do? They voted against it. When it came to the income tax cut for middle-class Canadians, what did they do? They voted…
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Mr. Speaker, what the hon. colleague opposite is saying is simply untrue. It was this government that increased the GIS for seniors. It was this government that increased the OAS for seniors over 75. It was this government that brought in the Canada disability benefit. It was this government that brought in the Canada child benefit, affordable day care across the country; the Canada dental benefit…
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Mr. Speaker, do the Conservatives want to talk about compassion? They are the ones who blocked, for a number of days, the ability to pass dental benefits for low-income children. They are the ones who voted against supporting low-income renters in paying their rent. They voted against the Canada child benefit, which supports nine out of 10 Canadian families. They voted against affordable child car…
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Mr. Speaker, it is a bit rich coming from the member opposite that he wants to talk about supporting Canadians when, with every single chance, he has voted against measures that support Canadians. When they talk about the spending that we have done, that is thousands of dollars that are helping Canadian families with the high cost of living. We know what would happen if the Conservatives were in p…
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Mr. Speaker, on this side of the House, we have been here every day for the past seven years to support Canadians, whether through the Canada child benefit, tax cuts for the middle class, the dental care benefit or housing assistance. During the pandemic, our government was there and continues to be there for Canadians. It is too bad that, at every opportunity, the Conservatives vote against these…
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Mr. Speaker, do we know what Canadians cannot afford? They cannot afford an official opposition that is proposing cuts to the things they rely upon, like employment insurance, the Canada pension plan, the Canada child benefit, affordable day care, Canada dental benefits and housing supports. What Canadians cannot afford right now when they are feeling the economic pinch are the cruel spending cuts…
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Mr. Speaker, the Conservatives, at every opportunity over the last seven years, have voted against measures that have supported Canadians, whether it is Canadian children, families, seniors, people who are in need of housing or Canadians with disabilities. We have brought forward important measures that add thousands of dollars into the pockets of the most vulnerable of middle-class Canadians who …
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Mr. Speaker, it is a bit strange to hear from members opposite about economic records, because when they were in power, that prime minister, Stephen Harper, had the worst economic record since R. B. Bennett in the Great Depression. Whereas, under our government, we have had record low unemployment. We are supporting vulnerable and low-income Canadians. We are making sure we are setting up our coun…
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Mr. Speaker, what this side is committed to is being there for Canadians in their time of need, just as we were throughout the pandemic, where we supported nine million Canadians with the Canada emergency response benefit. We supported hundreds of thousands of Canadian businesses and organizations and ensured that we were there for them the whole time and—
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Mr. Speaker, on this side of the House, we are committed to being there for Canadians in their time of need. Whether that was through the pandemic, when we were there with income supports and business supports for both individuals and organizations that needed to get through those dark times, we were there; or whether it is for ensuring that we are there for families that are struggling with the h…
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Mr. Speaker, I am very proud of the fact that over the summer we added 13 passport pickup locations across the country, including, for the very first time, in Canada's north, in Whitehorse in Yukon, which is really important. We are continuing to ensure that we are delivering passport services for Canadians in a timely manner. I can assure my colleague that we are looking across the country to mak…
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Mr. Speaker, time and time again, the Conservatives have demonstrated that they do not care about supporting low-income Canadians and Canadians who are facing the high cost of living. When it comes to initiatives such as lowering taxes for the middle class and the Canada child benefit, or when it comes to child care, with families across the country saving up to 50% in fees, thousands of dollars a…
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Mr. Speaker, I do not know about Conservative members, but I speak to real Canadians every single day, and today in Ontario, 86% of child care centres have signed on to the Canada-wide early learning and child care agreement. I have heard from families that are saving thousands of dollars. In fact, last week, a woman in Toronto contacted me to say $4,000 is what her family is getting back, dating …
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Mr. Speaker, I know the Conservatives do not like to admit it, but we are actually coming out of a global pandemic, one of the most difficult periods of time that Canadians have gone through in almost a century. When we talk about extraordinary spending, it is because we supported nine million Canadians with the Canada emergency response benefit. It is because we supported thousands of businesses …
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Mr. Speaker, I would like to thank my colleague for his question. It is clear that we take this issue very seriously. That is why, when we were elected in 2015, we were there for families and for children and why 1.3 million Canadians have been lifted out of poverty since 2015, including 450,000 children. We will continue to be there for Canadians. Today, all members of the House have the opportun…
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