Oral Questions
Mr. Speaker, there have been discussions among the parties, and I believe that you will find unanimous consent for the following motion, which I will read in English. That the House strongly condemn the killing of Jina Mahsa Amini at the hands of the so-called Iranian “morality police”, a direct consequence of the systemic and sustained harassment and repression of women by the Iranian government;…
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Madam Speaker, I very much enjoyed the speech from the new Conservative leader. However, I noticed there was something missing in the centrepiece of his economic policy, relating to the advice he gave to Canadians to invest in cryptocurrency. The Leader of the Opposition has refused to answer questions on his advice to Canadians to invest in cryptocurrency as a way to opt out of inflation. Does he…
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Madam Speaker, I will be sharing my time with my hon. colleague from Winnipeg South. Here we are on the first opposition day. As many commentators and Canadians have noted, the new Conservative leader has no plan to fight climate change and no plan to make life more affordable for Canadians. He did not mention the climate crisis once during the leadership race, nor did he have any concrete proposa…
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The new Leader of the Opposition said just last week that the proposed investments in our affordability plan, which would double the GST tax credit, get dental care for those who cannot afford it and provide direct payments to Canadians having trouble paying the rent, were all akin to printing cash. I guess that was before members of his own party flip-flopped on their position and finally, albeit…
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Madam Speaker, I find it laughable for the member opposite to suggest that the Conservative Party has a concrete plan to fight the climate crisis. She referenced Stephen Harper's government. Under Stephen Harper, our emissions ran wild. We have put in place a robust and very ambitious target to get to net zero, and we are committed to getting there. We hope that the Conservatives will not stand in…
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Madam Speaker, the experts I named in my speech all said that our plan to put a price on pollution was the best way of dealing with the increase in greenhouse gas emissions in Canada. With respect to our goal of achieving net zero, it is certainly a very ambitious goal, and we are proud of it.
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Madam Speaker, the answer to my colleague's question is yes. If she had read our budget, she would know that is absolutely our priority. I would appreciate hearing the position of the New Democrats on our price on pollution. I believe they support it and I would like to hear, over the course of the day, what their position is on the increase in the price on pollution that we have proposed for next…
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Madam Speaker, I thank my colleague for her speech. It is good to hear the Bloc Québécois praise pollution pricing, the carbon tax, regardless of the fact that the Quebec government went all the way to the Supreme Court to challenge our national plan. Is the Bloc Québécois ready to admit that we are acting within our jurisdiction and that our carbon tax is a good thing for the provinces that do no…
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Mr. Speaker, I would be pleased to answer the question from the new leader of the Conservative Party. However, I would like to begin by saying that our thoughts are with Atlantic Canadians as they face Hurricane Fiona. Our government is there for them and ready to help. Our message to our fellow Canadians in Atlantic Canada is to be safe and follow the advice of local authorities. We stand with yo…
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Mr. Speaker, I completely agree. Canadians need us now. Global inflation is behind these economic uncertainties, and we need to be there to support Canadians. That is precisely why we want to double the goods and services tax credit. Will the Conservatives support this measure that will put money directly into the pockets of Canadians?
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Mr. Speaker, yesterday we heard the new deputy leader of the Conservatives say that she was going to support our GST credit. Another day, another flip-flop from the Conservatives, as the member for Leeds—Grenville—Thousand Islands and Rideau Lakes said that he might support it as well. Perhaps these two members can try to convince the new leader of the Conservative Party to put money directly into…
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Mr. Speaker, on this side of the House, we are proposing a plan to help Canadians deal with the rising cost of living. We are going to double the GST credit. We are going to put money in the pockets of Canadians who are struggling to pay their rent and we are going to pay for young children's dental care. I worry when the Conservatives say they are listening to their constituents who are having tr…
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Mr. Speaker, obviously, my heart goes out to Mike, my hon. colleague's constituent. I would also like to assure Mike that he can have a decent retirement. That is why we want to ensure a good retirement for our seniors and for all Canadians. I would like to understand why the Conservatives want to attack our Canada pension plan.
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Mr. Speaker, the global economic context is very difficult. We know full well that Canadians are having trouble making ends meet. The Canadian economy is also very resilient. My colleague referred to where we are compared to other G7 countries. We should keep in mind that Canada has the lowest deficit and the strongest economic growth in the G7. On this side of the House, we know how to manage the…
Read full speech →Routine Proceedings
Mr. Speaker, in cabinet and cabinet committees, as well as in meetings, phone calls and other conversations with cabinet colleagues, the Minister of Tourism and Associate Minister of Finance works to ensure that the voices of Alberta businesses, stakeholders, industries, communities and residents are heard. On July 20, 2022, Health Canada published new nutrition labelling regulations for packaged …
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Mr. Speaker, there is no certainty that the policies the Conservatives are proposing will affect the price at the pump for Canadians. What is certain is that we went all the way to the Supreme Court of Canada to defend our price on pollution, and the court ruled in our favour. What is certain is that the Conservatives have run out of ideas and do not know how to manage the economy or how to help C…
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Mr. Speaker, we know that this is a very difficult time for millions of Canadians. Groceries cost more, and Canadians are having a hard time making their rent or mortgage payments. That is why we have lowered taxes for the middle class twice now. The Conservatives voted against that. That is also why old age security payments, which we just increased, are arriving in July. That is also why the Can…
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Mr. Speaker, with all due respect, I would like to correct my colleague. Americans have not cut gas taxes, not yet anyway, because they know that lowering taxes for big oil does not help Canadians directly. On this side of the House, we help Canadians directly by providing one-time payments to Canadians facing housing affordability challenges, direct payments to seniors, and direct payments to fam…
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Madam Speaker, the answer is very simple. We lowered taxes for the middle class, and the Conservatives voted against it. It is unacceptable that today the Conservatives are asking us to do something they refused to do a few years ago. Yesterday, the Deputy Prime Minister announced our plan to support Canadians during this time of inflation and rising costs of living. It is a serious plan. The Cons…
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Madam Speaker, honestly, it is such a shame that one of our colleagues from Quebec is arguing favour of cutting taxes for oil companies when we know we are facing a climate crisis here in Canada and around the world. We will end up paying a lot more if we do not tackle the climate crisis right now. That is what we this side of the House are doing.
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Madam Speaker, yesterday, the Minister of Finance did give a speech on Bay Street in order to explain to Canadians how we have their backs in this time of unprecedented volatility on a global scale. In fact, she detailed a five-point plan that is going to help Canadians deal with the inflationary crisis that we are seeing right around the world. We have an affordability plan that is putting money …
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Madam Speaker, as I was saying, the Conservatives are changing their story by the day. Yesterday, the hon. member was accusing our government of not adding new spending into the economy in order to support Canadians. Today, he is saying we are spending too much. In fact, Moody's, S&P and all of the credit agencies have reconfirmed our AAA credit rating. The spending that the minister put forward y…
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Madam Speaker, I would like to thank the finance critic for the NDP for his question and for his work on the finance committee. I would point out that yesterday's plan announced by our Minister of Finance included many supports that Canadians would feel for the first time this year. For a couple in Ontario with an income of $45,000 and a child in day care, our plan could mean an additional $7,350 …
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Madam Speaker, the Conservatives are making jokes about a very serious situation. Maybe the hon. member saw what happened this week with cryptocurrency. That is the type of economic policy that is coming from the Conservative Party these days. Do the Conservatives not agree that a 50% reduction in child care this year is real savings for Canadian families? Do they not believe that $2,400 in the po…
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Madam Speaker, we did cut taxes for Canadians and the Conservatives voted against it. Thank goodness there was other support in the House to ensure that Canadians would see a reduction in their taxes. When it comes to supporting Canadians, we will continue to put in place the measures that put money directly back into the pockets of Canadians. I am thinking of a one-time payment for all Canadians …
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Madam Speaker, the Conservatives are changing their tone by the day. Yesterday, the member was accusing us of not spending more money in order to support Canadians, and today he is saying that we are spending too much. Which is it? What we have done is ensure that over the course of the past several months and years, our budgetary planning would ensure that we would be there for Canadians. That—
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Madam Speaker, the Bloc Québécois is accusing us of serving up the same lines. Would he have us add fuel to the fire and spend billions of dollars at a time when inflation is the issue? We already spent $300 billion during the pandemic to help Canadians. Now is not the time to spend more. Yesterday was simply an opportunity for us to explain the support measures we put in place in the April budget…
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Madam Speaker, all of the experts agree that what we have presented is a very fiscally responsible budget in April. S&P and Moody's have reconfirmed our AAA credit rating. Our debt-to-GDP ratio continues to consistently go down. Our economic forecast is absolutely incredible. Experts are predicting that this year and next year Canada will have the highest and fastest growth among G7 countries. We …
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Madam Speaker, the way the GST is administered in this country is that we impose it on the company, in this case the oil company, and it passes it on to consumers. What I have been explaining is that there is no certainty that oil companies will pass those savings directly—
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Madam Speaker, I would just say that so far, all the Conservatives have been proposing when it comes to economic policy is either a tax cut for oil companies or elimination of certain tariffs we have imposed on Russia. This is not serious economic policy. What we have proposed is.
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Madam Speaker, I agree with the member opposite. Canadians are feeling it. They are feeling increased prices at the grocery store and at the pump, which is why as prices are increasing, so are our benefits. Many, if not all, of our important benefits supporting Canadians right now are indexed to inflation, which means that they will continue to increase as inflation increases. Also increasing this…
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Madam Speaker, I appreciate the Bloc Québécois's question. What was announced yesterday is still very important. It is a plan to help Canadians who are dealing with the rising cost of living, whether it be through the increase to the Canada workers benefit, the increase to old age security, or the one-time payments to Canadians facing housing affordability challenges. It is a real plan that ensure…
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Madam Speaker, just yesterday, the Minister of Finance released our affordability plan in order to tackle exactly what my colleague is addressing, and that is the increased cost of living. What we have presented is our plan to increase the Canada workers benefit, to increase old age security, to provide a one-time payment to Canadians finding it difficult to access affordable housing and, of cours…
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Madam Speaker, I will be sharing my time with my colleague from Oakville North—Burlington. I am grateful for this opportunity to speak about our Bill C-5 and, especially, about the need to reform our justice system so that we can learn from the mistakes of the past and put an end to misguided policies, such as mandatory minimums. Mandatory minimums do not help make our communities safer and have d…
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Madam Speaker, it is important to clarify that what the bill before us would actually do is allow judges to evaluate the circumstances before them. Removing mandatory minimum sentences means empowering our judges. It means that if someone poses a threat to society—for example, as the member cited, a drug trafficker—certainly a judge is capable of evaluating the person before him or her and imposin…
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Madam Speaker, I thank my hon. colleague from the Bloc Québécois for his question and for the Bloc's support for Bill C-5. Obviously, we are all concerned about gun violence, which is on the rise. That is precisely why we introduced Bill C-21, which seeks to ban the sale and importation of assault-style weapons. We will also continue with our plan for a mandatory buyback of assault-style weapons. …
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Madam Speaker, I thank the NDP member for his question. I know that many members in government have also been working on similar private members' bills. It is important to recognize that we are debating Bill C-5, which is before us today, and I certainly hope the NDP will be supportive of it. As I mentioned, it does move the needle significantly toward ensuring that we end discriminatory practices…
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Mr. Speaker, it comes as no surprise that this question is coming from the Conservative Party. It voted against increasing taxes for the 1% and decreasing taxes for the middle class. With respect to jobs that the member raises, Statistics Canada released a report today indicating that May saw 40,000 new jobs created in this country. These are full-time jobs that are well-paying. Since last year, w…
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Mr. Speaker, once again, the only proposal from the Conservative Party is to cut taxes on the oil and gas companies themselves, with no guarantee that those tax cuts will be passed on to consumers. What we are doing is providing direct support to Canadians so they can meet the increased cost of living that they are seeing as a result of the war in Ukraine. We will continue to be focused on Canadia…
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Mr. Speaker, there are a number of measures that our government put in place that will help Canadians this year. Canadian families will be receiving up to $7,000 this year in the Canada child benefit, and cheques will start to come out in July. Over three million Canadian workers will benefit from the Canada workers program. What we heard from the other side, from the Conservatives, were two polic…
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Mr. Speaker, the Conservatives are proposing to give a tax break to oil and gas companies, not to Canadians. We are providing direct payments to Canadians. Canadians who have trouble finding affordable housing would be getting a direct payment from our government. Canadians who are working at minimum wage would be getting a direct payment from our government. We are helping Canadians directly, and…
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Mr. Speaker, as I was saying, we are focused on supporting Canadians directly. That is why this year Canadian families will receive up to $7,000 in the Canada child benefit. That is why our new Canada workers program will support over three million workers with an increased top-up. We also have direct payments going to Canadians who are having trouble finding affordable housing. We are there to su…
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Mr. Speaker, the member opposite cites a PBO report. The PBO report also confirms that inflation is a global phenomenon caused by the war in Ukraine and by bottlenecks in supply chains from the pandemic. What we have done is put forward a number of measures in the budget that would help Canadians directly. What the Conservatives have done is delay the implementation of the budget, delay funding go…
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Mr. Speaker, a report just came out this week indicating that Canadians and investors have an extremely high confidence in the Bank of Canada and all of our financial institutions. That is certainly not thanks to the member for Carleton's comments or the Conservatives' comments impugning the independence of the Bank of Canada. We will do everything to ensure that our Canadian economy continues to …
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Mr. Speaker, the member opposite cites a few statistics, and I will do the same. This morning, Statistics Canada confirmed that wages increased for Canadian workers at the highest rate since 1981, by nearly 4%. Canadians are taking home more money in order to meet the cost-of-living crisis they are facing, and our government is supporting vulnerable Canadians. With respect to seniors, for example,…
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Mr. Speaker, it is the NDP that is proposing to increase taxes on oil and gas companies, and it is the Conservative Party that is proposing to cut taxes on oil and gas companies. We are focused on Canadians. We are focused on supporting vulnerable Canadians—
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Mr. Speaker, this week, the Conservatives proposed a number of economic policies. One of them was to cancel our price on pollution. A price on pollution, as we know, is the most effective way to tackle climate change. The other was to give oil and gas companies a break by dropping the GST. The GST works in this country in the following way: The government taxes the oil and gas companies, and the o…
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Mr. Speaker, we have been there for Canadians throughout the pandemic. We have regularly increased our supports to food banks, and we have helped lift over 400,000 children out of poverty. Our programs are supporting vulnerable Canadians every day. This year alone, we have ensured that the Canada child benefit will increase by up to $7,000 for a Canadian family. This is direct support to Canadians…
Read full speech →Statements by Members
Mr. Speaker, the Russian invasion began over 100 days ago. Since then, the people of Ukraine have been experiencing a massacre. In December, two months before the invasion, I proposed that the Standing Committee on Foreign Affairs and International Development urgently examine the situation in Ukraine. Our work is not done, and I still think it is very important. Our foreign affairs committee hear…
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