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Results: 391 - 420 of 889
View Chrystia Freeland Profile
Lib. (ON)
As we build back, we have it within our reach to build back better, tackling challenges that hold us all back: homelessness, systemic racism, the unfinished and essential work of reconciliation.
Economic downturns are always especially hard on young people. The COVID-19 recession is particularly damaging in this regard because of its impact on the service sector in which many students work. Among other steps, the government proposes to reduce student debt by eliminating interest on the federal portion of the Canada student loan and Canada apprentice loan for 2021-22.
I remember vividly struggling with my own student loans and I am glad to help relieve our young people, who are swimming so hard against the COVID-19 current, of this additional burden.
In the coming months, we will work with Canadians and consult broadly to design the growth plan that will guide our recovery and set our course for the years to come.
Our country entered this crisis in a strong fiscal position, allowing our government to take decisive action to help people and businesses weather the storm. That action has helped so much. To date, Canada has recovered almost 80% of the more than three million jobs lost at the outset of the pandemic. Compare that to the United States which has recovered just over half, but there is still a lot of hard slogging ahead.
First, we must defeat the virus. Only then, when the threat of lockdowns and resurgence is passed, will our economy be ready for a return to full, stable, long-term growth. Canadians understand that this crisis demands targeted, time limited support to keep people and businesses afloat and to build our way out of the COVID-19 recession. The support and investments outlined in this plan, including our stimulus, will foster a resilient and inclusive recovery.
Fiscal guardrails will help us establish when the stimulus will be wound down. The government will track progress against several related indicators, recognizing that no one data point is a perfect representation of the health of the economy. These indicators include the employment rate, total hours worked and the level of unemployment in the economy.
The data driven figures will tell us when the job of building back from the COVID-19 recession is accomplished and we can bring this one-off stimulus spending to an end. When the economy has recovered, the time limited stimulus will be withdrawn and Canada will resume its long-standing, prudent and responsible fiscal path based on a long-term fiscal anchor, which we will outline when the economy is more stable.
Make no mistake. As we have learned from previous recessions, the risk of providing too little support now outweighs that of providing too much. We will not repeat the mistakes of the years following the great recession of 2008.
In this fall economic statement, we are being transparent about the continuing uncertainty. We are planning and preparing for all eventualities. The rate of infection, the severity of shutdowns, the deployment of a safe and effective vaccine, all of these are variables in our economic outlook and our path to recovery.
But as our fiscal plan shows, brighter days are ahead. We can afford the investment we must make to reach them. Canada entered this pandemic with the strongest fiscal position of any G7 country. We retain that position today.
Federal debt-servicing costs, relative to the size of our economy, remain at a 100-year low. We are locking in those low costs by issuing more debt into longer-term instruments at these historically low rates.
Canadians want a tax system that is fair, where everyone pays their fair share, so the government has the resources it needs to invest in people and keep our economy strong.
That is why we are moving ahead with implementing GST/HST on multinational digital giants, and limiting stock option deductions in the largest companies.
Canada will act unilaterally, if necessary, to apply a tax on large multinational digital corporations, so they pay their fair share just like any other company operating in Canada.
View Chrystia Freeland Profile
Lib. (ON)
Our growth plan is far-reaching and transformative, but does this mean that the worst of the COVID-19 crisis has passed? Sadly, it does not. Indeed, our country's most difficult days may come in the weeks and months immediately ahead.
Hospitalizations are on the rise, and the virus continues to take a terrible toll, particularly on our elders. That is why we must redouble our public health efforts, obey public health instructions, physically distance, wear masks when in public, avoid social gatherings and wash our hands. We must all do this. We can save lives.
Canadians can and should avail themselves of the federal programs now available. This safety net is there now so that people can make the right decisions to protect our health. If we do the right things, if we hunker down and heed public health advice for these last remaining months, we will also be doing the right thing for our economy. We will bring closer the day when every Canadian can get back to a normal life. Most importantly, we will greatly lessen the mortal toll of this disease.
After nearly 10 months of the pandemic, we are all tired, but we also know that vaccines and a better day are coming. To get to that day, we must first help each other get through the winter. Our grandparents and great-grandparents lived through hard winters too, in times of war and depression, on frozen prairie homesteads and in windswept fishing villages in Atlantic Canada, all across our vast country. The living survivors of those days, now our most vulnerable elders, are counting on us to buckle down for another few months.
We can do this, we must do this and we will do this. Canadians have faced tough winters before, and we have always emerged stronger. We will this time too.
View Chrystia Freeland Profile
Lib. (ON)
Mr. Speaker, the member opposite touched on a lot of issues, ranging from vaccines, to support on businesses, to debt, deficits and fiscal anchors. I am going to try and touch on most of those.
Let me start with vaccines, and let me say something that is very important for Canadians to appreciate, because it is a key element in building the confidence we all need in our economic recovery. Canada has the most expansive portfolio of vaccines of any country in the world. We have 10 doses for every Canadian.
We have, like a smart farmer or investor, hedged our bets. There are seven different vaccines in our portfolio and four of those vaccines, from Pfizer, Moderna, AstraZeneca and Johnson & Johnson, are already submitting data on a rolling basis to Health Canada regulators. That can, should and will provide a great deal of confidence to Canadians.
Let me quote Moderna's chair, Noubar Afeyan, who, by the way, came to Canada as a refugee child. He said that Canada is near the front of the line to receive 20 million doses of the COVID-19 vaccine from Moderna. “The people who are willing to move early on with even less proof of the efficacy have assured the amount of supply they were willing to sign up to. In the case of Canada, that number is about 20 million doses.” Let us think about that. That is 20 million doses of a single vaccine and there are 38 million Canadians. He continues, “The Canadian government, like others, have also reserved the ability to increase that amount. And those discussions are ongoing.”
This is very important for building the essential confidence in one another and in our economy. We have an extensive vaccine portfolio and it is going to make a world of difference.
Let me speak briefly about the issue of debt and deficits. I will say two things. It is important for Canadians to appreciate that the interest charges on our debt that we are paying right now are the lowest in a century. The government is acting prudently to push out the maturity of that debt so we can lock in today's low interest rates.
View Chrystia Freeland Profile
Lib. (ON)
Mr. Speaker, I thank my colleague for his question.
I will start by speaking about federal aid for the provinces and territories. It is truly historic.
Let us begin with the safe restart. We have invested $19.9 billion in the restart. We have added another $2 billion for the restart in schools, and as I announced today, we will be providing another $8 billion for long-term care, ventilation and personal protective equipment. We are there for the provinces and territories. We are there for Canadians.
I want to add, for my hon. colleague's benefit, that we are there for Quebeckers. We are there for Quebec businesses. Since the start of the crisis, eight out of every 10 dollars has been spent by the federal government. Twenty-five per cent of Quebeckers received the Canada emergency response benefit. We saved the lives and families of 80% of Quebeckers. This winter will be a hard one, so we have decided to raise the emergency wage subsidy to a maximum of 75%. That is a lot.
With respect to the vaccine, I think that Quebec must be proud of Noubar Afeyan, who is a Quebecker. His family still lives in Quebec. It is because Canada welcomes refugees that the world has this vaccine. Yesterday, Mr. Afeyan told the CBC:
The people who were willing to move early on with even less proof of the efficacy have assured the amount of supply they were willing to sign up to.
That is the case for Canada. We will have 20 million doses of the Moderna vaccine. It is one of our vaccines.
View Chrystia Freeland Profile
Lib. (ON)
Mr. Speaker, I am accustomed in the House to facing many accusations, but I did not expect to be accused of a policy of austerity this afternoon.
When it comes to taxing the web giants, we are clear on our intent to levy the GST/HST equally on all service providers in Canada. That is fair, and I know Canadians believe in fairness. We also made very clear that while we much prefer working inside the OECD to have a multilateral approach to taxing corporate revenues of multinationals, if that job is not done, Canada will act unilaterally and in January 2022, we will impose our own tax, because that is fair too.
View Chrystia Freeland Profile
Lib. (ON)
Mr. Speaker, let me speak for a moment about vaccines. Let me start by thanking the outstanding public servants at Procurement Canada. Thanks to them, Canada has one of the very best portfolios of vaccines in the world. We have purchase agreements with all of the leading vaccine candidates: Pfizer, Moderna, Johnson & Johnson, Sanofi, GlaxoSmithKline, Medicago, Novavax and Oxford-AstraZeneca. We are well positioned to vaccinate Canadians and that is what we are going to do.
View Chrystia Freeland Profile
Lib. (ON)
Mr. Speaker, let me inform Canadians and members of the House that six rapid tests have been authorized: bKIT Virus Finder from Hyris; BD Veritor system from Becton, Dickinson and Company; Abbott ID Now; Abbott Panbio; Xpert Xpress; and Sofia 2 SARS Antigen FIA from Diagnostic Hybrids. By the end of the year we expect delivery of 20.5 million Abbott Panbio antigen tests.
View Chrystia Freeland Profile
Lib. (ON)
Mr. Speaker, I have spoken about vaccines and rapid tests so let me talk for a moment about the border. Let me start by reminding all Canadians and visitors to Canada that a 14-day quarantine is mandatory and we expect and require people to abide by that.
When it comes to the Canada-U.S. border, let me also say this. We have imposed unprecedented restrictions on travel across that essential border and have done it while maintaining the essential lifeline of trade between Canada and the U.S. That is a great accomplishment and a testament to the friendship between Canada and the United States.
View Chrystia Freeland Profile
Lib. (ON)
Mr. Speaker, I agree with the member opposite that the vaccine distribution plan is absolutely essential.
That is why I am so proud of the public servants at Public Services and Procurement Canada. Thanks to them, Canada has the very best portfolio of vaccines in the world. We have contracts with Pfizer, Moderna, Johnson & Johnson, Sanofi-GlaxoSmithKline, Medicago, Novavax and AstraZeneca-Oxford.
View Chrystia Freeland Profile
Lib. (ON)
Mr. Speaker, in order to distribute the vaccine, the most important thing is to procure the vaccine.
That is why I want to emphasize that Canada has done this. It is important to reassure Canadians and to explain that we really do have the best portfolio of vaccines in the world.
As for distribution, we are currently working with the provinces and territories, experts, and the Canadian Armed Forces to ensure that we have an excellent distribution plan.
View Chrystia Freeland Profile
Lib. (ON)
Mr. Speaker, I thank my colleague for his question.
Today, members talked about the Holodomor, a deliberate effort to kill a language and a culture. That is why I want to assure the member that French in Quebec is very important to me personally. I am well aware of the fragility of the French language.
I want to assure all members that we will work to protect French in Quebec.
View Chrystia Freeland Profile
Lib. (ON)
Mr. Speaker, I want to again point out that I understand what a challenge it is for Quebec and Quebeckers to remain francophone in North America when they are surrounded by anglophones.
I also understand that there are new challenges in the digital age. That is why I truly want to work with all of our colleagues to protect the French language in Quebec and Montreal.
View Chrystia Freeland Profile
Lib. (ON)
Mr. Speaker, I thank my colleague for the question.
I am very pleased to inform the House that, starting today, small and medium-sized businesses can apply for the Canada emergency rent subsidy through the Canada Revenue Agency. Payments will begin on December 4.
I also want to note that the assistance will be retroactive to September 27. The government will cover up to 65% of rent. If businesses are subject to lockdown restrictions they will receive 90% of the cost of their rent.
View Chrystia Freeland Profile
Lib. (ON)
Mr. Speaker, what we have today is not only a plan for commercial rent. We have a law, and I would like to thank all members of this House and of the Senate for supporting it.
I would like to take this opportunity to let all small businesses across our country know that they can apply today to Revenue Canada to get that rent support. Payments will begin on December 4. This is retroactive to September 27. This is the support our businesses need, and they will get it.
View Chrystia Freeland Profile
Lib. (ON)
Mr. Speaker, I thank the member for his question. It gives me an opportunity to point out to Canadians that, together, we have created a rent subsidy program and that Canadians can apply today.
With regard to the emergency wage subsidy, we also decided together to extend this program until the summer. This is also very important to all businesses across the country.
View Chrystia Freeland Profile
Lib. (ON)
Mr. Speaker, our government has prioritized the health response to COVID-19 and has supported businesses and our economy.
We entered this crisis with a strong fiscal position, which has allowed us to provide unprecedented support to Canadians during this pandemic.
I am pleased to announce today that on November 30 we will be presenting the 2020 fall economic statement. Our plan will continue to support Canadians through the pandemic and ensure that the post-COVID economy is robust, inclusive and sustainable.
View Chrystia Freeland Profile
Lib. (ON)
Mr. Speaker, the Canadian wine industry is, of course, something that we are all very proud of, and we are proud of the remarkable advances that that industry has made.
The Government of Canada works very hard to support that industry in regions across the country, including working very hard on some of the trade issues that the member has been asking questions about.
View Chrystia Freeland Profile
Lib. (ON)
Mr. Speaker, let me be very clear. Israel is a close and important friend of Canada, and Canada will always stand with Israel.
Let me also be very clear to Jewish Canadians in my riding and across the country. We stand with them, particularly today when we are seeing an appalling rise in anti-Semitism here and around the world.
View Chrystia Freeland Profile
Lib. (ON)
Mr. Speaker, let me speak to Canada's place in the world and to our foreign policy.Today we are living in a world where there is a worrying rise of authoritarian regimes and a worrying rise of anti-democratic populism. Our country, in that world, will always stand up for human rights and will always stand up for the rules-based international order. That may not always be popular, but that is the Canadian way.
View Chrystia Freeland Profile
Lib. (ON)
Mr. Speaker, our government is proud of the process we introduced.
In 2016, we made essential reforms to the existing process, which included bringing back judicial advisory committees. This led to the appointment of 400 first-class legal experts to the bench by our government. It is a transparent and fair process that has contributed to diversity on the bench.
View Chrystia Freeland Profile
Lib. (ON)
Mr. Speaker, I thank my colleague for his question.
Our Minister of Justice was a law professor at McGill. He is a lawyer with very strong ethics and principles. We are very proud of the judicial selection process introduced by our government. It is a transparent process, far more transparent than the one we had before.
View Chrystia Freeland Profile
Lib. (ON)
Mr. Speaker, I do not fully agree with the question.
The reality is that our judicial appointment process is a clear process, a transparent process, an open process, a process that has led to a more diverse judiciary. It has helped select highly qualified judges in Canada.
View Chrystia Freeland Profile
Lib. (ON)
Mr. Speaker, I thank my colleague for his question.
I am obviously an anglophone, but I must say that I agree that the French language in Canada, in Quebec and in Montreal is in a very fragile position. I agree that all of us here in the House have an obligation to work to help and preserve the French language in Quebec and Montreal. This is very important to us.
View Chrystia Freeland Profile
Lib. (ON)
Mr. Speaker, defending the French language and Quebec culture is a priority for our government.
I want to give an example. During the negotiations on the new NAFTA, which were very difficult, we held a very firm position, which was to not allow any changes to the cultural exemption that protects Quebec culture and the French language. We succeeded in protecting that. It was very important to us.
View Chrystia Freeland Profile
Lib. (ON)
Absolutely, Mr. Speaker. That is why I am very proud to say that the Canadian net-zero emissions accountability act will require the federal government to meet its net-zero emissions target by 2050.
View Chrystia Freeland Profile
Lib. (ON)
Mr. Speaker, of course the Prime Minister will, and so will everyone on this side of the House.
I will ask, respectfully, the leader of the NDP, whether the NDP will commit to supporting the Canadian net-zero emissions accountability act. This is landmark legislation. It sets Canada on the path to net-zero emissions by 2050. I am so proud of Canada for this legislation and I hope all members of the House will support it.
View Chrystia Freeland Profile
Lib. (ON)
Mr. Speaker, our income support programs have played a fundamental role in getting Canadians through the first wave of the COVID crisis, and they are going to get Canadians through the second wave.
When it comes to fraud, that is completely unacceptable. The hard-working public servants in the CRA are doing an outstanding job, and they are going to make sure that all claims are legitimate.
View Chrystia Freeland Profile
Lib. (ON)
Mr. Chair, I am not going to offer new projections, but let me remind the member that in the fiscal snapshot, the deficit—
View Chrystia Freeland Profile
Lib. (ON)
Yes, Mr. Chair, and I want to be clear with members. I am going to refer to numbers from the snapshot, not new numbers tonight. I will tell the member more with the next question.
Results: 391 - 420 of 889 | Page: 14 of 30

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