Parliamentary Speeches

Mr. Speaker, the member for North Vancouver—Capilano will be deeply and profoundly missed in this House, on the North Shore, in B.C. and across Canada. We were nominated as neighbours within weeks of each other, and for more than 12 years, I have had the pleasure of watching his impact on our community and our country. The only solace I have is that Europe, the world and Canada get to continue to benefit from His Excellency's new position. He did not do this alone. He is notorious for surrounding himself with the best people, and I thought he might want to take this opportunity to acknowledge some of the great Canadians with whom he has had the opportunity to work over the years.

Mr. Speaker, as we all know, our friend does not get enough time to talk in the chamber, so I have arranged for a literal “choose your own adventure” question, remarking both on his speech and also on his previous answers. On affordability, I know for a fact how much dental care, child care and the national school food program have helped constituents in my riding of Burnaby North—Seymour. On defence, the member talked about how we went from less than 1% in the Harper days to more than 2%, but he did not talk about how the economy has grown, so it sounds like we doubled the spending, but we more than doubled it. With regard to the Conservatives' saying that we are antidevelopment, we are actually at a stage where there is record bitumen production in Alberta, record royalties and record corporate profit. On any of those three areas that the member would like to talk about, I would like to hear his ideas.

Mr. Speaker, I rise today with a profound sense of gratitude and purpose as we debate Bill C-222, otherwise known as Evan's law, at report stage. This is a bit of a historic moment. Just two days ago, we officially secured a royal recommendation for the legislation. This marks only the fourth time in Canadian history that a private member's bill has received a royal recommendation and the first time it has ever been obtained through this specific legislative path. We were, in fact, joking about this just before the debate started. Before we discuss the mechanics of the bill and the amendments before us today, we must remember why we are here. Legislation often deals in the cold realities of budgets, bureaucracy and statutory language, but Evan's law is fundamentally about compassion. It is about how our government treats Canadian families in some of their darkest moments. For me, this is deeply personal. As I shared during second reading, my wife and I came incredibly close to losing one of our daughters during a difficult birth. Those 20 days we spent in the NICU gave us a glimpse of the heartbreak that is experienced by many families. In fact, we are still friends with many of the families we met in the NICU during that experience. Sadly, for approximately 1,600 families in Canada every year, there is no happy ending. They leave the hospital without their child, and they return home to a government system that inadvertently adds to their unimaginable pain. Under the current rules of the Employment Insurance Act, if a child passes away while a parent is on leave, the parent legally ceases to qualify for parental benefits in that very moment. Members can consider what this means in practice. In the midst of planning a funeral and grieving a profound loss, a parent is expected to contact Service Canada immediately. If they do not, they are subject to a financial liability that the Canada Revenue Agency will later claw back. Parents can switch to EI sickness benefits, which offer similar financial support, but to do so, they have to contact Service Canada every two weeks and prove that they are still grieving, to rejustify their need for support. Imagine forcing grieving parents to repeatedly explain their tragedy to strangers every 14 days. It is a cruel and unnecessary administrative burden placed on people who are barely holding it together. In fact, we do not need to imagine this because we heard these stories during the committee appearances at HUMA. I have always believed that Bill C-222 sells itself. It is straightforward and compassionate, and it provides an elegant solution to a glaring bureaucratic failure. Evan's mom is a constituent of Burlington. As the two former ministers of Service Canada, the member for Burlington and I were well-versed in what was operationally possible within the department. We were careful to maximize the benefit for grieving families while simultaneously reducing administrative and incremental costs. It is one of those rare cases in government where we can do the right thing while reducing unnecessary red tape. From the beginning, we have had strong and early support from the Minister of Finance and ESDC. When we presented the framework to the Prime Minister last spring, it was very well received. During second reading, the debate was incredibly compelling and the bill was unanimously supported by the House. When the bill proceeded to the HUMA committee, the testimony we heard was extraordinarily moving. Many MPs commented that it was some of the most heart-wrenching testimony they had ever heard during a legislative debate. I want to give immense credit to our committee colleagues from all parties. When I first introduced the bill, I was honest that I was going to need help to secure a royal recommendation. I was honest that it was going to be difficult. The committee worked brilliantly and strategically to keep the bill strictly within its original scope so that it could survive the legislative process, paving the exact procedural runway needed for the Prime Minister and cabinet to officially support it with the royal recommendation that we have before us today. That brings us to the amendments being introduced at this stage. As I promised in the House, I committed to working co-operatively to tie up the technical loose ends to properly execute this within the EI framework. The government amendments before us today do exactly that. Rather than abruptly cutting off support, the newly amended framework would explicitly ensure that parental benefits can continue to be paid for the entire eligibility period, whether that is the 40-week standard or the 69-week extended window. It clarifies that these benefits remain payable even when the eligibility period has been extended for special circumstances such as hospitalization. Crucially, these amendments introduce a vital safety net. If a child tragically passes away near the very end of a parent's leave, when they have limited remaining entitlement, the amendments grant up to five additional weeks of benefits per eligible parent. This would ensure equitable support for all families, regardless of when a tragedy occurs. Furthermore, we are making corresponding amendments to the Canada Labour Code. We are extending job-protected bereavement leave to 17 weeks. This ensures parents will have the protected time off they need to access these EI benefits and provides additional flexibility for mothers whose maternity leave overlaps with their bereavement. Most importantly, we are addressing the cruel administrative burdens. The amendments introduce a regulatory authority allowing the Canada Employment Insurance Commission to establish a compassionate, simplified notification process, such as a basic attestation. This avoids forcing parents into biweekly reporting, while ensuring and protecting program integrity. I also want to address the fiscal reality of the bill head-on. While some costing estimates looked at payouts in isolation, they failed to account for the fact that many of these parents would otherwise switch to EI sickness benefits, which pay out a similar amount. Therefore, on a net basis, the measures are somewhat cost neutral. In fact, there are savings because the CRA will no longer need to chase down grieving parents for clawbacks. As well, by stopping Service Canada offices from having to process biweekly sickness reports, we are reducing administrative waste. We are saving the government money while delivering infinitely better services to Canadians. This is a prime example of Parliament working exactly as it should, prioritizing compassion, focusing on practical solutions and working across the aisle to get the details right. My hope now is that we can move quickly through the House and through the Senate. It is my expectation that we will get this bill implemented before Christmas of this year. Once that happens, any parent who faces the unimaginable loss of losing a child while on parental leave will no longer face additional administrative cost pressures from our government. Instead, they will be given the time, space and support they need to heal. Wednesday was a historic day, but we will not stop pushing until affected parents are directly benefiting from Evan's law. Let us pass this bill. Let us show Canadians that their Parliament can be efficient, smart, and above all, kind and compassionate.

Madam Speaker, I only have five minutes, but I am not going to take a lot of it. I will start by saying thanks. I want to thank all of my colleagues who contributed, not just today but in the first hour. To all of my colleagues who have been working on this for several years, either at the HUMA committee or in various ways, it is hard for me to explain why it has perhaps taken this long to get to this place. However, I am going to do everything I can to make sure this bill gets across the line. I especially want to thank the members who presented their own personal, individual stories. The fact that we have members in this House who could have benefited from this bill, who are willing to be vulnerable, get up and tell their stories, tells us how impactful this is for the more than 1,600 families this affects across Canada. I would like to thank them next. For those families who have had this happen, I thank them for sharing their stories, which are not easy to tell. Those families told their stories not for their own personal benefit but for the benefit of the next family that may benefit from this particular legislation. For that, I say a real heartfelt thank you. I want to thank the Minister of Jobs and Families, the Minister of Finance and all of their staff who have helped work through various iterations of this bill and who will continue to work as we go through, hopefully, to the committee process and on to what I hope is third reading and royal assent. Of course, I want to thank the critics, both the old critic and the new critic in the Bloc and the critics in all the parties, for their communication and their work on this so far. For the 1,600 families that would benefit from it, this bill would provide a simple and elegant fix. A Bloc member rose in the first hour and asked if this was a good measure, saying that it seems to have universal support but that they were concerned about the royal recommendation. They asked me if we had the royal recommendation. I answered honestly that I did not have it and needed everybody's help to try to get it. I am happy to update the House and say that I believe we have found a path to get a royal recommendation. However, it will require co-operation at committee, and we have to tie up a few loose ends. The required amendments are straightforward. They do not change the purpose of the bill; they simply ensure sound legislative execution. We will work diligently to make sure that is successful. The last thing we want to do is have another bill go all the way through and then not actually help those 1,600 families. I believe there is broad agreement in the House to move this quickly to HUMA. I do not think it will take long to study it. We could have it back in the House and actually, probably, have the bill wrapped up by February. We have the evidence and the stories. We have the solution right in front of us. For the benefit of all Canadians and those future families who, in the most unfortunate of circumstances, might face this kind of tragedy, let us get this done. Let us use this moment to help those future families.

moved that Bill C-222, An Act to amend the Employment Insurance Act and the Canada Labour Code (death of a child), be read the second time and referred to a committee. Mr. Speaker, I rise today to speak to my private member's bill, Bill C-222, the relieving grieving parents of an administrative burden act, also known as Evan's law. It is an incredible week for me, personally, to be introducing this legislation. Sunday represented the 10-year anniversary of my first being elected to this House, and I thank my friends and neighbours in Burnaby North—Seymour for continuing to give me their trust and support over all these years. Wednesday represented the 20th anniversary of my wife and I being together. I have to say, through you, Mr. Speaker, but mostly through the television cameras, to my wife Ravi that I love her very much. Of course, I love our two beautiful daughters, Nova and Solar, who are turning seven and five. That means I have been an MP for more than half of my relationship and a father for the majority of my time as an MP. Why is this an important context for this bill? One of our daughters had a very challenging birth. We came incredibly close to losing her. Had it not been for the day-and-night, 24-hour service of a dedicated team of NICU nurses and doctors at the Royal Columbian Hospital over the first 20 days of her life, she would not have made it. Those 20 days in the NICU gave us a lot of perspective. There was not only a deep feeling of gratitude for everyone who works in our health care system, but an appreciation for the struggles parents of young children face every day. We met families who were both emotionally and financially devastated by the unplanned complications that so many new parents face. Sadly, not every story has a happy ending. ln Canada, approximately 1,600 families experience the unimaginable heartbreak of losing a child during the period in which they are receiving parental benefits. ln those tragic circumstances, our system currently adds a layer of unnecessary pain and bureaucracy to families who are already facing profound loss. Under the current rules, once a child passes away, the family technically no longer qualifies for parental benefits. This means that the family begins to accrue a financial liability that will later have to be clawed back. Families can choose to switch to EI sickness benefits, which provide similar compensation, but doing so requires them to contact Service Canada, not just for the initial application, but for every two weeks thereafter to confirm their eligibility. I think we can all agree that this is a cruel and unnecessary burden. Imagine forcing grieving parents to repeatedly explain their tragedy to strangers every 14 days. That is the unfortunate reality of our current system. Evan's law offers a simple, elegant and compassionate solution. lt states that if an individual qualifies for parental benefits and their child tragically passes away during that period, they would continue to qualify. There would be no phone call, no questions and no clawbacks, and there would be little to no additional cost. There would be no significant incremental increase in cost because parental benefits and the El sickness benefit are nearly identical in value. Actually, this change would save government resources by reducing administrative complexity and eliminating needless red tape. Remember, every time a government official needlessly picks up the phone, it simultaneously increases costs to the taxpayer while decreasing the level of service provided to everyone else. This is a small and technical amendment. The entire bill, fully translated, is less than one page, double-sided. While I have no delusions that this piece of legislation would change the world, I know it would make a world of difference to those 1,600 Canadian families who are directly impacted. I want to take a moment to acknowledge the many people and partners who helped make this bill possible. l would like to extend my gratitude to the Minister of Finance and the Minister of Jobs and Families for their guidance and support as this proposal was developed. I want to recognize the previous members of HUMA who studied this issue in 2019 and whose work laid much of the foundation for this legislation, as well as the hon. member for Burlington, who was previously the minister responsible for Service Canada. She helped draft this legislation. She seconded it and will be speaking to it later today. Simply put, this bill would not exist without her. Also, Evan's parents live in her riding. Evan's mother, Jennifer, was the individual who first raised this issue after enduring the loss of her child. The power of a free and democratic society is having the ability to turn a person's heartbreak into something that will help thousands of families in the future. I am thankful to Jennifer for her immeasurable contribution to this bill. I also want to thank members from all parties who have reached out to me directly to express their support, share their personal stories and offer constructive ideas. Compassion does not belong to any one side of this House; it belongs to all of us. I truly believe the bill represents the kind of legislation we could all get behind, reflecting our shared values and shared humanity. From my time working at Service Canada, I have seen first-hand how simple, innovative changes can make the government not only more service-oriented but also more effective and more efficient. At a time of global uncertainty, our government has expanded services to help make life more affordable and to make Canadian workers more productive. This includes such programs as child care, dental care, pharmacare and the national school food program. All of these programs help improve our quality of life in the short term while growing our economy and our competitiveness in the long term. However, they are only sustainable if we work to make our government as efficient as possible. Our Prime Minister has embodied this philosophy, challenging our government to spend less in operations so we can invest more in growing our economy and unlocking the full potential of Canada and Canadian families. This piece of legislation aligns perfectly with this philosophy, which is important because we require a royal recommendation for the legislation to pass. I assure members that we are working diligently with the Prime Minister and the ministers responsible to get that recommendation. It is possible to modernize our government, make it more cost-effective and provide better services all at the same time when we work together. Evan's law encapsulates this principle perfectly. It is about creating a system that understands that families who are going through a hard time need compassion. It responds with effective simplicity. It is about designing government that works for people, not against them. Bill C-222 is a small bill, but it would make a meaningful difference. It is a reminder that good government is about more than budgets and bureaucracy; it is about people and the compassion we show in the moments that matter most. This is a bill that makes sense, saves money and, most importantly, reflects the kind of Canada we want to build, one that is fair, efficient, smart and kind. I hope all members of the House will join me in supporting Evan's law. If they have any questions or concerns, I invite anyone in this House or listening at home to reach out to me directly.

Mr. Speaker, I am working diligently to get it. I can tell the member that the other thing I have been diligently working on as the previous minister responsible is making sure that, if we get that royal recommendation, it could be implemented under the legacy system of EI very quickly, as well as under the BDM programme as well. Everything is aligning in the right direction, but I am going to need everybody's help to make sure that it happens.

Mr. Speaker, I thank my friend, the member for Burlington, for raising the issue initially. I had never been a part of the private members' bill lottery system before, and when I was lucky enough to get the number five spot, I felt the weight of that responsibility because it was an opportunity to do something that affected people in a meaningful way. Different people use the opportunity differently. When the member came to me and presented this idea, I thought about it for literally an entire day. I think it made sense to both of us really quickly, as previous ministers responsible for Service Canada. The fact is that there is so much good that we can do just by looking inside our current organization and asking the questions of why are we delivering something in a particular way and, given the technology and the state of our country, whether there is a way to improve upon it. Yes, this would be a small change but a meaningful one and part of a collection of changes that, if we all work together, can make our government more efficient and more compassionate, and can certainly provide better services to Canadians, especially when they are facing the most tragic of circumstances.

moved for leave to introduce Bill C-222, An Act to amend the Employment Insurance Act and the Canada Labour Code (death of a child). I rise today to introduce my private member's bill entitled the relieving grieving parents of an administrative burden act, also known as Evan's law. Every year, 1,600 families in Canada have to deal with the death of a child while on parental leave. In this case, the family technically no longer qualifies for parental benefits, so unless they contact Service Canada that day, the family begins to accrue a liability that CRA will eventually have to claw back. They could switch to EI sickness benefits, but then they have to call Service Canada every two weeks to confirm that they still need the benefit because of the loss of their child. It is a cruel and unnecessary burden. The bill provides an elegant solution. It simply states that if someone qualifies for parental leave and their child passes, they continue to qualify. There is no incremental increase in cost, because parental benefits are almost identical to the EI sickness benefit. In fact, there would be a cost savings, because we would be significantly reducing administrative costs and red tape. It is one of those rare measures that would not just help parents in the most tragic of circumstances but also would be relatively easy to implement. It is the right thing to do. It would reduce red tape and save the government money all at the same time. I hope all members will support the legislation, and I invite my colleagues to come talk to me if they have any questions or comments. (Motions deemed adopted, bill read the first time and printed)

Madam Speaker, it is a privilege to rise during the member opposite's first intervention in this House. Since this is my first intervention in the 45th Parliament, I would like to thank my constituents for sending me back here with an ever-increasing margin of victory for my fourth term. That is because of Julie Astley and the great team in my constituency office. It is because of everybody who worked on my campaign, but it is also because of my wonderful wife, Ravi, and my two kids, Nova and Solar. I believe we have an opportunity here where the member opposite can pledge not just to oppose but to propose solutions, because no matter where we sit in this House, we are all on team Canada. Will she pledge to work with us to find solutions for all Canadians?

Mr. Speaker, I greatly appreciate the opportunity to talk about the vast improvements in government services that have taken place over the last year. We could start with passports. Service improvements have gone across the country. Despite the fact that we were delivering 3.4 million passports two years ago, this year, we are delivering up to 5.7 million passports. We can now get 10-day passports in the territories. There is a new processing centre in B.C., and we will soon be able to get passports online so that we never have to wait in line again.

Mr. Speaker, do members remember when the Conservatives campaigned on shutting down veterans' offices, or when they promised to increase the retirement age to 67? Of course, they do not because Conservatives never say what they are actually going to do. It is why they speak in slogans. They hope no one would notice that they shut down veterans' offices in Corner Brook, Sydney, Charlottetown, Thunder Bay, Windsor, Saskatoon, Brandon, Kelowna and Prince George. Our government reopened all those offices and opened a new office in Surrey. When we say that we support veterans, unlike Conservatives, we actually mean it.

Mr. Speaker, the Conservatives are very particular about what statistics they choose to share. If they want to compare us to the United States, we might start with health care or dental care or pharmacare or child care. However, if they want to focus on the economy, they might focus on the fact that we have a lower deficit, that we have lower debt-servicing costs and that we pay lower interest rates than America does, as well as that we have higher forecasted economic growth. Unfortunately, because of the dangerous promises of the Leader of the Opposition, they do not want Canadians to hear about that. This is why Conservatives are promising to cancel the CBC.

Mr. Speaker, they do not want to hear this information. The Leader of the Opposition wants to add 5% tax on apartment construction. On affordability, he does not support dental care, pharmacare or child care. He does not support the tax cuts that we gave the middle class or the tax cuts we gave for small business. Worst of all, he does not want anybody to hear about this. This is why he wants to cancel the CBC and take that away from Canadians as well.

Mr. Speaker, my friend from British Columbia is correct that 2.4 million Canadians currently have their membership cards. Over 750,000 Canadians have care, and we are all hearing the good stories of the change that this is making in individuals' lives. It is making life more affordable. While Canada is in a position to have the lowest deficit and the best economic forecasted growth, we are investing in making life more affordable with dental care, with child care, with pharmacare, by building more houses, by attacking climate change and by making sure that we take measures to make Canadians' lives better. We will continue to do that.

Mr. Speaker, I am very happy to advise my colleague that, thanks to his efforts, more than 1.5 million Canadians have successfully enrolled in our dental care program. Today those 70 and older can apply, and children and people with disabilities can apply starting in June. In total, we expect nine million Canadians to benefit. I do not understand why Conservatives want to take dental care away from more than one in five Canadians. If we all work together, Canadians can make sure that Conservatives never have that opportunity.

Mr. Speaker, I am very happy to advise my colleague from the north shore that, as of yesterday, more than one million Canadians have successfully enrolled in our dental care program. In four days, applications will open up to seniors aged 70 and older, and in the coming months, we will open up eligibility for all Canadians. This is a life-changing program. It is not only an essential part of oral health, but also of overall health and economic productivity. I expect that children getting checkups and seniors getting dentures will put a smile on everyone's faces.

Madam Speaker, as we go away, we know that Canadians have had a hard year. We know that we have suffered with global inflation. We have had troubles with war in Ukraine and elsewhere. We have had, of course, the after-effects of the pandemic and climate change. Despite that, I think Canadians can feel good about the fact that we still have the lowest net-debt-to-GDP ratio in the G7 and that we have lifted millions of Canadians out of poverty. We have done that by investing in programs like health care, dental care, the CCB, $10-a-day child care, retirement security, and investments in communities like the Jewish Community Centre of Greater Vancouver, all investments—

Madam Speaker, in the spirit of the holidays, I want to take this opportunity to wish everyone happy holidays and a merry Christmas, and to say that, upon reflection, I think it is important for all of us to realize that no matter what party we belong to in the House, we all represent Canadians and, at the end of the day, all play for the same team. I recently had a chance to meet the member opposite's son, who happens to share a birthday with my daughter. I know that the member wants to build a great country for my daughter, just as I want to build a great country for his son, which is something I think all members of the House can come together on. We agree with a lot of the things and ideas he talked about. I, too, am excited by open banking. I am also excited by patent boxes. In fact, that is something I have worked on for some time. I often think there is a wonderful opportunity for the opposition in the House, not just to oppose but also to propose. I think good ideas can come from all sides of the House, so I congratulate the member opposite for a year of hard work and his relatively non-partisan speech. I will end my comments by agreeing with him on the last part of his statement, when he said, “Our workers...are the best in the world.” Merry Christmas to everyone.

Mr. Speaker, this is my first chance to rise in the House as the Minister of Citizens’ Services. I would like to thank my wife, my constituents and, of course, the caucus. I look forward to working with everybody in the House to improve citizens’ services. I am very happy to report that, thanks to the hard work of the now House leader, the passport backlog has been completely eliminated. In addition, our investment means that the printers are now five times faster and people can check their passport applications online. They will soon be able to renew their passports online as well. That is delivering better services for Canadians.

Madam Speaker, I will be splitting my time with the member for Kingston and the Islands. It is a pleasure to rise to discuss Canada's current fiscal position, our independent monetary policy, the current economic context and the 2023 budget, as well as to highlight a number of measures that are making life more affordable for Canadians while building a sustainable economy that works well for all Canadians. This week, the International Monetary Fund reaffirmed not only that Canada enjoys the lowest deficit in the G7, but that this advantage continues for each and every year through its projected horizon. It said, “Canada is a strong fiscal performer”, with an enviable job market and a strong labour participation rate, which have been bolstered by the government’s investments in a Canada-wide early learning and child care system. The IMF went on to note the resilience of Canada’s financial system in the face of recent global financial challenges, pointing specifically to Canada’s robust regulatory framework and contingency tools to safeguard federally regulated financial institutions, as well as insurance deposits. The IMF praised Canada’s progress in strengthening our anti-money laundering and anti-terrorist financing frameworks. It also noted our government’s efforts to increase housing supply and to address housing affordability challenges, including with the housing accelerator fund, which provides incentives for municipalities to bolster the housing supply even further. At the end of March, our government released budget 2023, our made-in-Canada plan for a strong middle class, an affordable economy and a healthy future. It comes at an important moment for our economy. As we have seen, Canada’s economy has made a remarkable recovery from the COVID recession. There are 890,000 more Canadians working today than when COVID first began. In the first four months of 2023 alone, the Canadian economy has added nearly a quarter of a million jobs. We have now recovered 128% of jobs lost during the first months of the pandemic, while the United States has only recovered 117%. Also, universal child care has increased the labour participation rate for Canadian women to a record high of 85.7%, showing the success of that policy, and our unemployment rate remains close to all-time historic lows. Global inflation, while still too high, has fallen in Canada from its peak of 8.1% last June to 4.4% last month, and the Bank of Canada predicts it will be 3% by this summer and 2% by the end of 2024. Canada’s inflation rate also remains below that of our economic peers. Inflation in the U.K. is almost double, at 8.7%; the OECD average is at 7.4%; the EU is at 6.1%; and the G7 is at 5.4%. We can see that at 4.4% we are way below those. Since February, the average wage for Canadians has grown by more than 5%, meaning that paycheques are now outpacing inflation. That means more money in the pockets of Canadians after a hard day’s work. Canada had the strongest economic growth in the G7 over the course of 2022, and that is projected to continue through to 2024. Also, in April, S&P reiterated our AAA credit rating, and we have the lowest deficit-to-GDP ratio and the lowest net debt-to-GDP ratio in the G7, lower than other major AAA-rated economies, such as the Netherlands and Australia. It is this remarkably strong economic foundation that underpinned the investments we made in our 2023 budget. Unlike the Conservatives, we believe our commitment to invest $196 billion to improve Canada’s health care system over the next 10 years is a prudent investment to make, especially in a context where we are exiting the greatest global health emergency we have faced in more than 100 years. We also think it is prudent to invest in fighting climate change and to develop the net-zero technologies that our world will demand as we continue to confront the increasing costs of previous inaction on reducing emissions. If investments in health care and the clean economy are the first two pillars of the budget, the third is our government’s focus on affordability. Let us not forget that our government reduced our debt-to-GDP ratio every single year before the pandemic. This allowed us to support Canadians and Canadian businesses through the pandemic, and it is what allows us to invest in making life more affordable for Canadians today. While inflation is coming down, I think we can all agree that it is still too high and is making it difficult for many Canadians to make ends meet and put nutritious food on the table. That is why budget 2023 introduced a grocery benefit that will help support 11 million Canadian families, including more than 50% of seniors. It will be delivered by cheque or direct deposit on July 5, so Canadians should watch for that over the next two weeks. We also secured a deal to reduce interchange fees for credit card-accepting businesses. This will save small businesses more than $1 billion over the next five years. At the same time, we are looking to reduce additional fees and charges for Canadians. This includes fees on their cellphone bills, event and concert fees, excessive baggage fees and unjustified shipping and freight costs. We are also cracking down on predatory lending. We are reducing the criminal interest rate from 47% to 35% and imposing a cap on payday loans. We are also supporting low-income Canadians by introducing automatic tax filing so that individuals can get access to the benefits they are entitled to. For some families, this will mean tens of thousands of dollars that they might not otherwise receive. Students are receiving better access to student loans with increased student grants. The average student is likely to save $3,000 as a result of our government's eliminating interest on student loans. This will help young workers and apprentices get the start they need when they are looking to first enter the workforce. I have not even mentioned dental care, which will benefit nine million Canadians, as well as our investment in creating high-paying sustainable jobs that will benefit generations to come. These investments build on significant investments that our government has made to support Canadians since first being elected in 2015. Child care costs, for example, have been reduced by 50%, with $10-a-day child care on track to being fully implemented by 2026. Child care on its own used to be the same amount as a mortgage payment. A family with two children is now saving over $20,000 a year in many cases. We have increased old age security and have worked with premiers to increase the average value of pension payments going forward. We have reduced taxes for the middle class while increasing them on the top 1%. We have also increased the amount everyone can earn before paying any federal income tax at all and have reduced taxes for small businesses not once but twice. Of course, let us not forget the Canada child benefit. This benefit, like many of the programs I have already referred to, is indexed to inflation and supports more than 3.5 million families. This means that as the cost of living rises, so will the benefit that Canadian families receive. On its own, the Canada child benefit has helped to lift hundreds of thousands of children out of poverty, and combined, these measures have lifted more than 2.7 million Canadians out of poverty, demonstrating that Canada’s first poverty reduction strategy is having a significant impact. Finally, our enhanced workers benefit is supporting 4.2 million Canadian workers with higher paycheques. We have ensured, for the first time, that our investment incentives include measures to support workers with fair wages and benefits. All of this together is happening because we believe that confident countries like Canada do well when they invest in themselves and when we invest in our people. These are challenging times, but Canada is in an enviable position to be able to support Canadians who need it the most in a responsible and targeted way while ensuring that global inflation continues to decline in Canada. At the same time, we are securing health care and retirement security for the next generation while creating high-paying sustainable jobs for this generation. There is obviously more work to do, more work to do on housing, more work to do on climate change and more work to do on affordability. Canadians are up to this challenge, and we are well positioned as a country to address those things. I hope that all members of this House will work together to bring forward the best Canadian ideas from right across the country, and that we will work to implement those ideas and positive solutions through the fall and through to budget 2024.

Madam Speaker, I really appreciate having another opportunity to address Canada's current fiscal situation. We have the lowest deficit in the G7. We have the lowest net debt-to-GDP ratio in the G7. That is what has allowed us to focus our investments in this budget on securing health care, with $196 billion invested over the next 10 years; investing in the future with sustainable jobs; investing in the clean economy; and of course investing in affordability. There is global inflation, and while inflation in Canada has come down from 8.1% to 4.4% and is now likely, as forecast by the Bank of Canada, to hit 3% by the summer and 2% by next year, we need to make sure that Canadians who need our support are receiving that support. We have invested in very targeted measures to make sure that the most vulnerable Canadians who need support the most get it through these hard times, while we position Canada as a country, as a whole, to thrive going forward.

Madam Speaker, I would like to start by thanking the member for her petition today. It is an issue that I have spent a lot of time on as well. I expect our issues are similar because we are neighbours. I also want to thank her for bringing up investments in housing. I had an opportunity to meet with mayors and councillors from across British Columbia at the UBCM Housing Summit, where we were all working together to find solutions to make rents and housing more affordable. Part of the discussion was about reviewing what the federal government has done. We have to remember that the federal government had been essentially out of housing for almost 30 years. That was until we created the national housing strategy, an investment of over $80 billion going to a number of different things. That particular summit gave me the opportunity to review how that money has been invested. Some 39% of it that has been invested in projects across the country and 61% is still unallocated. The investments in British Columbia on their own in the last six years already amount to more funding than the B.C. government has suggested it will put forward over the next 10 years, and we are continuing to invest on top of that. B.C. is a good partner. B.C. municipalities are a good partner. However, we can only get affordable housing if the federal government, the provincial governments, the municipal governments and indigenous governments all work together, and that is exactly what I propose we all do.

Madam Speaker, it is good to bring up the stress test measures that were brought up in 2018. We had historically low interest rates, and we were concerned Canadians might not be able to afford their mortgage payments if there was a sudden increase from historically low rates. We put that in place. What was the Conservatives' response? Not only did they speak against the stress test, but they actually suggested in the election that came after that we should extend amortization rates. They wanted Canadians to take on more debt and wanted to, in that action, increase housing prices at the same time.

Mr. Speaker, since last year, the Canadian economy has grown by 3.1%. Canadians have created close to 900,000 jobs, and 2.7 million Canadians have been lifted out of poverty. Nine million Canadians are getting access to dental care, child care costs are coming down by 50%, and, guess what, Canada has the lowest deficit in the G7. We have cut taxes for small businesses and we have cut taxes for the middle class. There is definitely more work to do, but we have the tools to make life more affordable for Canadians.

Mr. Speaker, I think it is really important to talk about families, because we are the party that introduced the CCB. We have lifted hundreds of thousands of children out of poverty, and when parents are trying to make ends meet, one of the most important things the government is doing is lowering the cost of child care. I have had multiple parents complain to me, over the course of my parliamentary life, about the fact that the cost of child care was equivalent to a mortgage payment, but they do not say that anymore, and it is going to get better because we are going to continue to reduce it until it is $10 a day.

Mr. Speaker, despite what the Conservatives are saying, Canada is working and Canadians are working. Canadians have created close to 900,000 jobs since the pandemic. There was a time for the Conservatives to positively contribute their solutions to the budget implementation act. That started in April, but instead of doing that, they decided to filibuster the entire thing. They sent food banks home. They sent chambers of commerce home. They did not want to hear from Canadians on how we could make it better. Therefore, their suggestion that they are going to come back in the summer, when their homework was due two months ago, is quite hypocritical.

Mr. Speaker, we know that all the students who go to summer school are the ones who did not do their homework throughout the rest of the year, and that is exactly what the Conservatives did. They spent two months filibustering the budget. We were talking about how we could positively contribute to solutions for affordability for Canadians and to create jobs for Canadians from coast to coast to coast, and for more than six weeks, the Conservatives decided to talk to themselves and send away Canadians who were coming to the table with solutions that were going to work. For them to come out this morning to say that they want to revamp a budget over the summer, I invite them to draft it. It would be nice to have a single solution in the House from the other side.

Mr. Speaker, youth unemployment has gone down under our budget. We have provided more jobs through the Canada summer jobs program. We are making sure there are jobs available. Whether it is on small craft harbours in Atlantic Canada, in the aerospace industry in Quebec, in car manufacturing in Ontario, on farms on the Prairies or in biotech companies in B.C., we are going to make sure there are lots of opportunities for young individuals to have the high-paying sustainable jobs of the future. That is why we are investing in this country. It is because we believe in the future, unlike the Conservatives.

Mr. Speaker, I think context is important. Inflation in Canada is coming down. It reached a peak of 8.1% and is now at 4.4%. It is going to go below 3%, as is projected, before the end of this year. Despite the fact it is coming down, it is already lower than what it is in the United States, the United Kingdom, Europe and the OECD. That means we can afford to make investments in making life more affordable. No Canadians are convinced that their lives are going to be more affordable by getting rid of dental care, getting rid of child care, eliminating the CBC or stopping to fight climate change. They have no good ideas on the other side of the House.

Mr. Speaker, it is unfortunate that the Conservatives do not believe that we can fight inflation and fight climate change at the same time, yet emissions and inflation are both coming down in Canada. Canadians have created over 900,000 new jobs. We have the lowest deficit and the lowest debt-to-GDP ratio in the G7. In addition, the IMF and the OECD now both project that Canada will have the strongest economy in 2023 and in 2024. This gives us the tools we need to address affordability. Of course, we have a national housing strategy, which is the first time the federal government has invested in housing in over 30 years.

Mr. Speaker, despite what the Conservatives say, everyone knows that inflation is a global phenomenon. Inflation in Canada is lower than our peer economies, and we have the best fiscal framework in the G7. Our budget not only retains this fiscal advantage and allows inflation to continue to decrease, it makes life more affordable for Canadians and invests significantly in health care and in dental care, while creating high-paying sustainable jobs to go above and beyond the close to 900,000 jobs that Canadians have already created.

Mr. Speaker, my summer plans are to go back to talk to my constituents and find out possible solutions to make Canada better. I hope that Conservatives will do the same. I wish that the Conservatives would do what they say and, over the summer, find solutions to bring to the House. The only solutions they have brought to the House so far have been to cancel the CBC, stop the fight against climate change and raid the pension benefits of seniors. Those are not viable solutions, so if they could spend the summer coming up with some positive solutions, I would be happy to work with them.

Mr. Speaker, we are putting forward a plan that is fiscally responsible. That is why inflation is coming down. If the member is not aware, it peaked at 8.1% and is now at 4.4%. It is projected to go lower than 3%. If the member thinks he is going to convince Canadians that he is going to make life more affordable by suggesting that we delete all the programs that make life more affordable, like dental care, like child care, like the CCB, like investing in retirement security for seniors, I do not think he is going to fool anybody other than perhaps the other members sitting on the other side of this House.

Mr. Speaker, as I have had the opportunity to say many times in this House, our plan is fiscally responsible and inflation is coming down. It is at 4.4% and we expect it to be less than 3% before the end of this year. At the same time, we are investing in making life more affordable, and we can afford to do that because we have the lowest deficit and because we have the lowest net debt-to-GDP ratio and because we have the fastest-growing economic growth, at 3.1%, in the G7. We need to take advantage of our good fiscal framework and make sure that we make life more affordable for Canadians.

Mr. Speaker, when we compare ourselves to our economic peers, we have a lower deficit, a lower net debt-to-GDP ratio, the fastest-growing economic growth in the G7 and lower interest rates. That is what is allowing us to invest in things such as dental care, child care, health care, affordability, economic growth and jobs. Over 900,000 jobs have been created since the pandemic. Yes, global inflation is hard, but we will get through this by working together.

Mr. Speaker, over the last week, the Conservative Party has tried to convince Canadians that we would be better off if we did not make those investments in health care, if we did not invest in dental care, and if we reduced investments in seniors' pensions and retirement security. They want to get rid of the CBC. They do not want to attack climate change. Canada has the highest economic growth and the lowest deficit in the G7. We are able to invest in making life more affordable for Canadians. Our government is up to this challenge, and so are Canadians.

Mr. Speaker, in fact, inflation is coming down. It peaked at 8.1%; it is now 4.4%, and that is better than the United States, Europe and the OECD. It is actually projected to continue coming down to below 3% very soon. It is still too high, but that is why we are investing in affordability. We have lifted 2.7 million Canadians out of poverty. We have created more than 900,000 jobs. In fact, through the workers benefit, more than 4.2 million Canadians are taking home bigger paycheques. All of this is while maintaining the highest economic growth in the G7 and the lowest deficit.

Mr. Speaker, I think it is very important to reiterate that inflation is coming down. It was at a peak at 8.1%. It is now at 4.4%. It is projected to go down below 3%. I think the other thing to say is that we are focused on affordability. That is why we have lowered taxes for Canadians, not once but twice. We lowered taxes for small businesses. In fact, in this budget, we found a way to drop credit card fees by 27%. That is going to save small businesses a billion dollars a year. That is the type of solution we can build if we work together on the budget instead of filibustering it.

Mr. Speaker, as I already described, inflation is coming down in Canada, and it is actually below inflation in the United States, inflation in Europe and inflation in the OECD. That is what is allowing us to invest in making life more affordable. I remember that when I was door knocking last summer, my constituents would tell me that their child care costs were as much as a mortgage payment, but now that we have reduced those costs by half and we are going to continue to reduce them to $10 a day, they are not saying that anymore.

Mr. Speaker, it is a little hard to take Conservatives seriously as they talk about affordability, when we have several affordability measures that are in front of the finance committee right now and instead of talking about those measures, they have turned them away. They have been filibustering for 23 hours. Food banks were scheduled to visit us. We wanted to hear from them. The Bloc and the NDP wanted to hear from them. The Cons wanted to talk to themselves. Stop the filibuster and let us get to work.

Mr. Speaker, I would like to thank my colleague for his speech and for putting this together. He has obviously thought it through. I appreciate him going over how in some ways the current rules could be abused. He is a thoughtful guy, and I am sure he has thought about the other side. Has he considered any ways this change in procedure could potentially be abused, and if so, has he thought about ways to mitigate that, or are there no ways in which this could be abused?

Madam Speaker, I think the Standing Orders are quite clear that speeches during late shows are supposed to address specific questions. There was some content that addressed the question, but to be clear, what we are discussing tonight is climate change, affordability and a question with regard to the strike of the Public Service Alliance of Canada, which I am very happy to share has reached a tentative agreement at the bargaining table. Getting to the topic at hand, climate change is one of the most pressing issues we face today, and I am honestly disappointed that the member for Renfrew—Nipissing—Pembroke and her Conservative caucus still refuse to support meaningful action to address it. While the economic impacts of climate change are daunting, so is the prospect of missing out on the immense opportunity the net-zero economy will provide. Over the coming decades, countries around the world will demand trillions of dollars' worth of net-zero solutions. We need to make sure that Canada maintains and strengthens our global leadership in this space. Our pollution pricing system actually incentivizes the creation of new sustainable technologies and services while creating sustainable high-paying jobs, all while decreasing carbon emissions. I will remind the member opposite that she actually ran on a platform that supported pricing pollution. It is interesting to see her completely change her position. It was not because the facts have changed; if anything, the case has become a lot stronger. It changed simply because she wants to please her ideological leader. Also, I would like to remind my colleague that our pollution pricing system is putting more money back in the pockets of those in Canadian households. The member knows that eight out of 10 households are actually better off with carbon pricing, and the remaining 20% are among our nation's highest-earning individuals. If my colleague really supported making life more affordable, she would support pricing pollution and our affordability package. Our solutions are in stark contrast to those of the Conservatives, whose best ideas so far are to ignore climate change, raid the pension benefits of seniors and underfund our employment insurance system. While inflation is global, it has gone down in Canada now for nine straight months. It is 4.3% today and is forecast to reduce further by summer. We know that the best way to fight the effects of inflation on affordability is for Canadians to have good-paying jobs. The good news is that a record number of Canadians are working. In fact, 865,000 new jobs have been created since the start of the pandemic, and Canada continues to enjoy historically low unemployment. At the same time, we have created the best economic growth in the G7 alongside the lowest deficit and net debt-to-GDP ratio. This fiscal advantage is what allows us to invest in making life more affordable. Prior to budget 2023, our affordability plan provided up to $12.1 billion in new supports to Canadians who needed them the most. We have put forward solutions, such as permanently eliminating interest on federal student loans, introducing dental care, and creating the Canada child benefit and our Canada-wide early learning and child care program. These are meaningful solutions that have helped make life more affordable for Canadians. I honestly think this place works best when we are coming together and finding solutions, so I would like to conclude by taking the opportunity to thank the member opposite for her support and her caucus's support of the grocery benefit. This particular benefit is a $2.5-billion investment that will help make life more affordable for 11 million Canadians and over 50% of our seniors. I think if we work together, we can come up with even more ideas to make life more affordable and grow an economy that works for everybody.

Madam Speaker, we had an election, and in that election the member opposite supported pricing carbon pollution. That is exactly what happened. That is a fact that anybody watching at home can look up. Canadians can count on our government to continue supporting those who need it most while carefully managing our finances and protecting our environment. We have a responsible plan, and we are doing our part to make sure we bring down global inflation in Canada. In fact, inflation has come down every month for the last nine months and is forecast to be back within the target band later this year. Despite these global challenges, we have continued to deliver for Canadians in the areas of affordability, child care and health care, and in transitioning to a sustainable economy with good, high-paying jobs. We have done this while maintaining our AAA credit rating and the best fiscal framework in the G7. We just came off a year with the best economic growth.