FINA Committee Report

Bloc Québécois Supplementary Opinion

The Bloc Québécois would like to thank all the witnesses who appeared before the Standing Committee on Finance during the tour and at meetings in Ottawa.

The Finance Committee report on pre-budget consultations does not take into account all six of the Bloc Québécois’ budget priorities:

• an aid package to support workers and businesses affected by the manufacturing and forestry crisis
• measures to give seniors back their dignity
• the reinstatement of education and social transfers to 1994–95 levels
• increased funding for social housing and a reversal of the Conservative government’s ideological cuts
• increased funding for culture
• a 180-degree turn on the environment

While the Finance Committee report includes some of the Bloc Québécois’ requirements, it fails to include others and does not go far enough.

Support for the Manufacturing Sector

The Bloc Québécois notes the following.

At the request of the Bloc Québécois, the Committee recommended that the government introduce various measures to support sectors and workers affected by the manufacturing and forestry crisis. The Committee recommended that the government allocate $1 billion to the forestry sector. The Committee also recommended that the government allocate $1.5 billion in reimbursable contributions to allow companies to purchase new equipment. The Committee also recommended to increase to 5 cents and make permanent, as of 2008–09, the sharing of the federal gasoline excise tax with municipalities. To support workers affected by the crisis, the Committee also recommended creating an independent Employment Insurance fund and introducing an income support program for older workers unable to find work. If implemented, these initiatives would total close to $5 billion in aid for the sectors and workers affected by the crisis.

The Bloc Québécois deplores the following.

The Committee did not retain the Bloc Québécois’ recommendation to use the surplus in the independent Employment Insurance fund to enhance the program. Although the Committee supported the Bloc Québécois’ demand to create an independent Employment Insurance fund to end government pillaging, it refused to enhance the program. Furthermore, the Committee also rejected the Bloc Québécois’ demand to reinstate the Technology Partnerships Canada program at the cost of $500 million.

top

Dignity for Seniors

The Bloc Québécois notes the following.

The Finance Committee retained the Bloc Québécois’ recommendation to allow seniors wronged by the federal government to receive full retroactivity of Guaranteed Income Supplement (GIS) benefits to which they are entitled. By supporting this measure, the Committee is recommending that the federal government fully reimburse the seniors who were shortchanged by the GIS. The Bloc Québécois also notes that the Committee recommended extending the GIS and Old Age Security benefit period to six months following the death of the recipient. This measure allows the surviving spouse to have six months’ grace to help him/her deal with this sad situation.

The Bloc Québécois deplores the following.

The Bloc Québécois deplores that the Finance Committee refused to recommend that the government increase GIS benefits so that, when added to Old Age Security benefits, they equal the poverty line. By refusing to include this legitimate demand by the Bloc Québécois, the Committee is preventing the most vulnerable members of our society from getting out of poverty.

The Fiscal Imbalance and Funding for Postsecondary Education

The Bloc Québécois deplores the following.

The Bloc Québécois deplores that the Committee rejected the Bloc Québécois’ demand to reinstate transfers to 1994–95 levels, indexed to inflation. The Bloc Québécois called for $3.5 billion to reinstate education funding levels. The Committee brushed this recommendation aside. Furthermore, the Committee refused to recommend that the government eliminate federal spending power in areas that fall under provincial jurisdiction and replace cash transfers to the provinces with equivalent tax transfers, as recommended in the Séquin Report passed unanimously in the National Assembly.

Social Housing and the Status of Women

The Bloc Québécois notes the following.

At the behest of the Bloc Québécois, the Finance Committee recommended that the government use the Canada Mortgage and Housing Corporation (CMHC) surplus to invest in social housing. While the Committee did not put a figure on the amount to be invested annually, the Bloc Québécois called for a $1 billion annual investment in social housing financed through the CMHC surplus so as to create adequate and affordable housing and increase supply.

The Bloc Québécois deplores the following.

The Bloc Québécois deplores that the Committee did not recommend that the government reverse the ideological cuts to the Court Challenges Program and Status of Women Canada. The Bloc Québécois reiterates its demand that, in the next budget, funding for the Court Challenges Program be reinstated and Status of Women regional offices be reopened.

Culture

The Bloc Québécois deplores the following.

The Bloc Québécois deplores that no funding for culture was included in the report on pre-budget consultations. The federal government is disturbingly indifferent about this matter. The many cuts to the Museums Assistance Program; the elimination of the Public Diplomacy Program, which funded international cultural tours; and insufficient funding for film and television bring home this point. The Bloc Québécois urges the Conservative government to change course and reinstate the cultural assistance programs for museums and public diplomacy and plow back into the Feature Film Fund, the Council for the Arts and the Television Fund, for a total of $398 million.

Environment

The Bloc Québécois notes the following.

The Finance Committee recommended that the government implement a cap-and-trade system for greenhouse gas emissions. The Committee also recommended that the government implement various tax incentives to encourage the purchase of energy-efficient transport trucks and to encourage investment by increasing the accelerated capital cost allowance rate for rail rolling stock.

The Bloc Québécois deplores the following.

The Bloc Québécois deplores that the Committee rejected its recommendation to set absolute greenhouse gas emission reduction targets at 1990 levels on a regional basis and establish a carbon emissions trading system in Montreal.

Other Considerations

The Bloc Québécois notes the following.

The Committee, with the Bloc Québécois’ support, made a number of recommendations that warrant recognition. The Committee recommended increasing the thresholds at which the GIS begins to be reduced. The Bloc Québécois supports this initiative because it allows GIS recipients to work and improve their standard of living. As to the manufacturing sector, the Committee recommended that the Minister extend the accelerated capital cost allowance period to five years for revenue equipment. It also recommended that the government implement the tax measures in the February 2007 report of the Standing Committee on Industry, Science and Technology. The Committee also recommended substantially improving the federal tax credit for research and experimental development. These measures will increase the competitiveness of Canadian and Quebec businesses. To make home ownership more accessible, the Bloc Québécois supports the recommendation to increase the amounts available under the Home Buyers’ Plan (HBP). At the Bloc Québécois’ behest, the Committee recommended that the federal government increase its funding to the broadband sector in rural and remote regions in Canada. This will improve access to high-speed Internet for residents in these regions. The Bloc Québécois applauds the Finance Committee’s recommendation to call on the government to develop a plan to raise Canada’s official development assistance to 0.7% of Gross National Product (GNP). While the Committee did not set a timeline, this measure will bring Canada closer to its millennium development goals.

The Bloc Québécois deplores the following.

The Committee recommends the creation of a single securities commission. The Bloc Québécois deplores this intrusion and will continue to defend the unanimous position of the Quebec National Assembly. The Bloc Québécois deplores that the Committee did not retain the recommendation to allow artists and self-employed individuals to average their income over more than one year. The Bloc Québécois deplores the Committee’s decision to remove the recommendation to increase government funding for agriculture, for example through an income support program or a new agricultural policy framework that responds to the needs of Quebec’s farmers. The Committee rejected recommendations to assist the First Nations, for example through government investment in infrastructure. The Committee also rejected the Bloc Québécois’ recommendation to significantly reduce the defence budget to reflect the end of combat operations in Afghanistan.

top