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Results: 1 - 15 of 18
View Lindsay Mathyssen Profile
NDP (ON)
View Lindsay Mathyssen Profile
2020-04-11 17:01 [p.2147]
Mr. Speaker, before I get started, I would just like to inform the House that I will be splitting my time with my hon. colleague, the member for Rosemont—La Petite-Patrie.
Like many members here in the House today, I am also hearing concerns and fears from constituents. Constituents are seeing businesses closing, they are being laid off and they are at home taking care of their families. They are also asking the government some serious questions. They need to know that we will quickly provide them with the help they so desperately need.
New Democrats support an increase in the wage subsidy. In fact, we have been calling for this for several weeks, but we think that it would be a wasted opportunity today to reconvene the House to deal with this issue without also dealing with the very serious gaps in the Canada emergency response benefit. I am happy that the unanimous consent motion starts to address our concerns.
I want my constituents in London to know that today, together, we can make sure that the programs and supports they need are provided. My staff and I have spoken with so many folks worried about how the government will keep them safe, housed, fed and employed. It is my responsibility to voice their concerns here in this place. My team has been working tirelessly to update our social media and connect with people via email and phone, getting them the information that we can. I am so grateful to my staff for that. My constituency office is normally busy at the best of times.
Many people are struggling to get the supports they need now and too many vulnerable people will not even qualify. There are holes in the system, and that is why New Democrats continue to advocate that the emergency benefits be made universal. Every week my office receives thousands of phone calls, emails and messages from people who need support, but the programs announced thus far, sadly, fall short of their needs.
I consistently hear from seniors and people with disabilities who are feeling the financial impact of COVID-19 through increased food cost, increased costs for the delivery of goods such as groceries and from being limited to 30 days of medications when they would normally receive 90 days. This means they need to spend three times the amount on dispensing fees, a cost that is unsustainable for those on a fixed income.
Many veterans organizations are scrambling, including London's Royal Canadian Air Force Association 427 Wing. This institution in London—Fanshawe is very dear to me. It not only serve veterans and provides a place for them to gather, but also is home to the Secrets of Radar and the Spirit of Flight museums. Even just the building it resides in is worth preserving as a major historical site in London. With the temporary closure due to COVID-19, it has seen a large drop in revenue. I fear that this temporary closure will not just be temporary and that we will lose this valuable place that supports so much history and so many veterans. These institutions need our help.
When it comes to COVID-19, the impact is felt by everyone, including students. While the 75% wage subsidy will keep more Canadians employed, many young Canadians are just trying to start their careers or are looking for summer jobs. With more than one million jobs lost since COVID-19 hit, many job prospects look grim. Students typically do not have savings stored away for a rainy day and many are graduating with crippling debt. With this pandemic, they have fewer opportunities to earn money to support themselves and pay back their loans. This is wrong and we need to do better. New Democrats are also calling on the federal government to permanently extend the waiver of interest charges on student loans. The government should not profit off the backs and the futures of our students. Not now and not ever.
This is a situation that no one could have predicted and prepared for, and I am sure that all members would agree with me that no one should lose their housing, which is a basic human right during this time. From a public health perspective, if Canadians are to follow directives from the health authorities to practise social distancing and self-isolation, they must have a home to quarantine in. Workers who are sick cannot feel pressured to continue working and risk infecting others for fear of losing their income and the roofs over their heads. Given the homelessness crisis that already exists in Canada, not only do we need to have measures in place to properly house everyone, we also must do everything we can to prevent an increase in the homeless population.
To protect renters, it is essential to put a nationwide moratorium on all evictions during the pandemic. As well, a temporary rent freeze period must also be imposed to protect renters from price gouging during this precarious time. My NDP colleagues and I are hearing from constituents who have just received a rent increase notice and are extremely distressed by the prospect of having to find alternative housing at this time.
Whether it is seniors, people with disabilities, veterans, students, workers or small-business owners, we see people who are looking for support but finding none. As it stands, it is estimated that 862,000 Canadians who need help will get nothing through employment insurance or the government's emergency response benefit. Every day last week, the Prime Minister and the government highlighted gaps in supports, but due to the work done here today, hopefully more Canadians will not fall through these cracks. However, the government needs to provide direct assistance to all Canadians immediately. The NDP is asking for the government to send a cheque of $2,000, with an additional $250 per child, to every Canadian immediately.
As many of my colleagues and I have mentioned in the House numerous times, 46% of Canadians are $200 or less away from financial insolvency. Many of those people live in my riding of London—Fanshawe. By providing direct assistance to them, we can make sure this crisis does not turn into a catastrophe.
For those who rely on the government programs and benefits offered, like the child care benefit, they first have to file their taxes to access this help. If they do not, they could face being cut off. This is what happens when programs are means tested, and not universal. It often results in more bureaucracy, delays and people going without help. I am happy that the government announced it is moving the tax-filing deadline.
As I run a volunteer tax clinic from my constituency office, we see hundreds of people who need help to file their taxes. In my community, these tax clinics, sadly, have been closed, but we need to provide this vital service. I ask the government, on behalf of my constituents, to consider extending that deadline once again so that we can help as many people as possible to file their taxes. Simply put, a one-month extension is not enough.
Not only are people struggling, but many small businesses are facing their own crisis. I cannot imagine their heartbreak now when they have put everything into their business, the countless hours, time with family and their life savings into building their dream, and now see it in danger of disappearing. They are closing their doors but trying their hardest to keep paying their employees. With income declining and bills piling up, this situation is becoming impossible to maintain.
That is why we are happy the government listened to New Democrats, labour and business groups to strengthen this wage subsidy. We called for this before the House sat the last time, and I am grateful that some of the changes passed today would help get the supports flowing to small and medium-sized enterprises, charities, not-for-profits and non-profits. However, we need to address shortfalls in this legislation, such as removing the 30%-drop-in-revenue requirement for SMEs with fewer than 50 employees so that more of them could apply for the wage subsidy. We must also remove payroll limits on the $40,000 loan through the Canada emergency benefit account and offer $10,000 grants immediately to help a diverse group of enterprises and ensure a faster response time for businesses to receive supports.
I must say I am relieved to see the change that New Democrats pushed for, to ensure that when some local organizations pay meagre stipends to their volunteers, those people will still qualify for emergency benefit programs even if they lose their jobs.
New Democrats are ready to improve all benefits for all people and will keep working to make sure that companies cannot turn the money meant for workers into big CEO bonuses. That needs to be reflected in this legislation. There is always a worry that large corporations will use this crisis to their benefit, and that is why there is so much concern about the government's partnering with Amazon for the distribution of personal protective equipment and supplies purchased by the Canadian government. The announcement was made without consultation with postal workers, and the government's decision will put further strain on workers who are already poorly protected. Amazon uses numerous subcontractors throughout its delivery operations. Warehouse workers are also being put at risk. They are being pressured to continue working even when they get sick.
As the COVID-19 crisis continues, we owe our thanks to many front-line workers. Truck drivers, food production and grocery workers, pharmacy workers, EMS workers and the health care providers who are working in our hospitals and long-term facilities are heroes. These workers must have access to personal protective equipment and their worker's rights must be respected.
Also on the front lines are social workers who are working with their clients, those struggling with a lack of social and mental health supports and who now are facing increased anxieties. Social workers are also dealing with the reality of trying to maintain social distancing at work and in shelters. Many shelters in Canada are at over capacity at the best of times. How do people maintain social distancing when they do not have their own home? How do they maintain services at friendship and drop-in centres when they are supposed to be limiting contact? This crisis has further exposed many of the gaps in our system, especially for our most vulnerable. Food banks are also in desperate need of help. We are prepared to work with the government to make sure that those supports are in place to assist people in need.
In conclusion, we must find a way to make sure that everyone in Canada can get through these unprecedented times with enough money to pay the bills, a job to go back to and a safe place to live. We need to do it as quickly as possible. Let us join together to pass this bill to put the supports in place to lift each other up. Let us commit to helping one another to see us through this and move forward to strengthen our public services and social programs for everyone.
View Marty Morantz Profile
CPC (MB)
Mr. Speaker, seniors, rural residents and those without Internet have been unable to access the information and the tools they need to file their taxes. The Liberal member for Winnipeg South Centre's office said it best: “This is a very poor reflection on an organization that is already viewed by many as being very insensitive to the clientele it is trying to serve.”
The minister has failed Canadians for five long years. When will she stand up to her agency and fight for everyday Canadians who are just trying to file their taxes?
View Diane Lebouthillier Profile
Lib. (QC)
Mr. Speaker, the CRA certainly is not overlooking the 1.7 million Canadians who choose to file paper tax returns.
Since 2018, the CRA has mailed out tax packages directly to those who filed paper returns the previous year. Anyone who has not received a tax package can call the dedicated telephone line and order one, and the package can also be downloaded or ordered on the CRA's website.
There is no need to make a mountain out of a molehill.
View Luc Berthold Profile
CPC (QC)
View Luc Berthold Profile
2020-02-25 15:01 [p.1516]
Mr. Speaker, for once, could the minister side with Canadians who just want to fill out their tax returns?
Revenue Canada goes all out to make its own work easier and make things harder for seniors and rural residents who do not have access to the Internet. People across the country are angry, even people in the riding of the member for Winnipeg South Centre, whose office says that Revenue Canada is already considered to be very insensitive towards the clients it is trying to serve.
When will the minister ensure that Revenue Canada cleans up its act?
View Diane Lebouthillier Profile
Lib. (QC)
Mr. Speaker, I would like to remind my colleagues opposite that they were the ones who cut the information packages that Canada Post was supposed to deliver to all clients across the country. Since 2018, we have sent 1.7 million tax packages to rural residents, seniors and individuals who file their tax return on paper.
View Yves-François Blanchet Profile
BQ (QC)
Mr. Speaker, with respect to the new free trade agreement, the government's main, if not only, argument in recent days and weeks has been that the Premier of Quebec asked that it be ratified quickly.
There seems to be a burst of enthusiasm for what Quebec wants. I wonder whether this sudden enthusiasm will lead the government to also approve a motion unanimously adopted by the National Assembly on May 15, 2018, regarding a single tax return.
View Diane Lebouthillier Profile
Lib. (QC)
Mr. Speaker, let me reassure my colleague. There will be no single tax return.
Our government will continue to require federal tax returns in order to protect jobs in Quebec's regions and respond to francophones across Canada.
That is why we will continue working very hard with Revenu Québec, an important partner.
View Stéphane Bergeron Profile
BQ (QC)
View Stéphane Bergeron Profile
2019-12-13 11:40 [p.399]
Mr. Speaker, the Quebec National Assembly is unanimous: Quebec wants a single tax return.
This is achievable, and without any job losses. Premier Legault even made a formal request during the recent election campaign. This afternoon's meeting with the Premier of Quebec is an excellent opportunity for this government to respect the will of the Quebec National Assembly—for once.
Will the Prime Minister commit to implementing a single tax return administered by Quebec, as Quebeckers want?
View Diane Lebouthillier Profile
Lib. (QC)
Mr. Speaker, the Canada Revenue Agency employs nearly 6,000 people across Quebec and is an important economic driver in Quebec's regions.
Whether we are talking about Rimouski, Abitibi, Shawinigan or Jonquière, we have always been very clear: We will never put those jobs at risk. That said, we continue to work with Revenu Québec to make it easier for Quebeckers to file their tax returns. Our government is constantly improving the services provided by the Canada Revenue Agency in order to make a real difference in the lives of Quebeckers.
View Alain Therrien Profile
BQ (QC)
View Alain Therrien Profile
2019-12-09 15:22 [p.109]
Mr. Speaker, I was talking about health transfer payments. I explained in detail that the provinces are dependent on funds from Ottawa, and they have been since the beginning of Confederation. Federal government transfers flow to the provinces so that they can do their job. Over time, however, transfers have continued to diminish so that the government can download the deficits to the provinces, as we saw in the nineties, or overload them with standards and conditions to go back to the basic notion that centralizing power was what the Fathers of Confederation intended and that the goal of federal spending is precisely to accomplish that almost-solemn mission.
There was no mention of the single income tax return in the Speech from the Throne. On May 15, 2018, the National Assembly unanimously voted in favour of a single income tax return that the Quebec government alone would oversee and administer. I know the motion was passed unanimously because I moved it myself. At the time, the Prime Minister quipped that the National Assembly rarely agrees unanimously on anything, but we saw it happen with the single income tax return. Was that mentioned? No, it was not.
There is some hope, however, since our Conservative colleagues believe in the same cause. If the NDP or the Liberals were to help us, we could create a single tax return administered by Quebec, much to the delight of the Quebec National Assembly and Quebeckers. A recent survey shows that 65% of Quebeckers support a single tax return administered by Quebec. The only study that has been done estimates annual savings of $425 million. Not only will this save money, but it will also save time, since Quebeckers will be able to do their taxes faster.
The Liberal government and the NDP always use the argument of job losses in the Jonquière and Shawinigan regions, and they say those losses would be drastic. Yes, jobs would be lost. Is that an argument for axing the plan? No. According to the Minister of National Revenue, 5,300 jobs in Quebec involve administering Quebeckers' income taxes for the federal government. Transferring those responsibilities to the Quebec government would create 2,332 jobs doing the same work for the Quebec government. The Quebec government could easily ensure that those jobs remain in Shawinigan and Jonquière. The other employees could work on tackling tax evasion or managing web giants like GAFA. Those jobs would pay for themselves.
As there is a shortage of workers in the federal public service, those people could easily go work for the federal government. Given that 4% of public servants retire every year and that it will take four years to transfer the federal government's responsibilities to the Quebec government, there will be more than 800 jobs to be filled. Clearly, there will be no job losses.
Which Liberal or NDP members will join the Quebec consensus that there will be no jobs lost?
Our consensus is that the public service will save $287 million and that Quebeckers who file a single tax return will save time. Who can argue with that?
The Bloc Québécois is expecting a positive response. We are ready to have discussions to promote this great idea.
We know that Quebec is not responsible for managing its representation abroad.
We would have liked the document to make a clear statement on ending the loopholes in supply management. We would like Quebec farmers to no longer be used as a bargaining chip to promote the auto industry in Ontario, or the beef industry in the west. We would like these people to be respected and to never again be directly attacked or have money taken out of their pockets, because they work very hard and deserve to enjoy the fruits of their labour.
I would reiterate in closing that I began my speech with a bit of history. Something has changed since the creation of the Canadian Confederation. At the time, Canada's motto was “from sea to sea”. Unfortunately, now it is “drill, baby, drill”.
Sadly, in western Canada, the economy today is concentrated on a single sector. It is not diversified enough. We have to help the west diversify. What people need to realize is that oil dependency is not just an issue for western Canada. It is an issue for the banks as well. Around the world, five of the 12 banks that are currently investing the most in oil are Canadian. The Canadian economy is heavily involved in oil.
There is one party here that says we need to produce more oil. It has the advantage of being honest and saying what it really thinks. There is another party that plays around with definitions and contradictions in an attempt to put us to sleep. It says it supports this, but not too much. It does not mention oil, the “elephant in the room”, as my colleague put it earlier, in the throne speech. It talks about climate change, whereas the oil issue goes in the complete opposite direction.
We need a clear-eyed understanding. If we want to undertake an energy transition, we simply cannot promote oil. Some people are saying that we should change the Constitution, that it is an old model that does not work well and is of no use to us anymore. I explained the problems with that earlier.
I want the House to know that the Bloc Québécois and Quebeckers do not want to play this game anymore. To paraphrase Jean Garon, changing a comma in the Canadian Constitution would be about as easy as scratching my forehead with my front teeth. We quit.
What will the Bloc do? The Bloc is here to stand up for farmers, to defend Quebec's territory so that no pipelines are built on it without our permission. The Bloc is here to stand up for our cultural community, which is being attacked by web giants. It will stand up for the Davie shipyard and its extraordinary workers, who have demonstrated the quality of their work time and time again. We will defend the energy transition to ensure that our young people have a healthy future in an extraordinary environment.
That is the mission of the Bloc Québécois. We will do that work on behalf of Quebec. We will work hard until, one day, Quebec becomes a country.
View Peter Julian Profile
NDP (BC)
Mr. Speaker, I congratulate my colleague, the Bloc Québécois House leader, on his first speech in the House. It was a great, eloquent speech. I appreciated his comments. We agree on a number of points.
One point is the transition to clean energy. These changes are necessary in British Columbia, much like in Quebec and in the rest of Canada. We also agree on supply management. I am very happy to learn that the Bloc Québécois will continue the work started by Ruth Ellen Brosseau, Guy Caron, Karine Trudel, Robert Aubin and Brigitte Sansoucy, who fought to protect supply management. This is truly needed in Quebec and in the rest of Canada.
My question for him has to do with the single tax return. Naturally, we meet with federal public servants. I met some in Jonquière and in Shawinigan, and many of them are worried about their future, their jobs and the impact on the system. There are benefits, but of course, there are also drawbacks.
My question is very simple. Did the Bloc Québécois House leader ever meet with federal public servants in Jonquière and Shawinigan to talk about what would happen next with this file?
View Alain Therrien Profile
BQ (QC)
View Alain Therrien Profile
2019-12-09 15:37 [p.111]
Mr. Speaker, I thank my colleague, the leader of the NDP, for the question.
I will tell him the truth. I just started sitting in the House. I have worked on the single tax return file, and I am quite familiar with it. Did I talk to those people? At the time, it was not my responsibility, because it was not my job. However, if the hon. member met with people who work in Shawinigan or Jonquière and are concerned, I propose that we meet with them together and work on finding solutions with them. I am sure that the Government of Quebec only expects us to find smart solutions and make the single tax return a reality.
I am sure these people can understand that this will not result in any job losses. If we act in good faith, there is a way to resolve this matter without punishing anyone. If my colleague reaches out to me, I will return the favour and propose that we go together to visit the people who are directly affected by this file.
View Luc Berthold Profile
CPC (QC)
View Luc Berthold Profile
2019-12-09 21:51 [p.167]
Madam Chair, last week the Minister of National Revenue said that the Conservative Party and the Bloc Québécois should be ashamed for asking for a single tax return for Quebeckers.
Can the government tell us whether it plans to act on this request to allow Quebeckers to file a single tax return?
View Jean-Yves Duclos Profile
Lib. (QC)
View Jean-Yves Duclos Profile
2019-12-09 21:51 [p.167]
Madam Chair, there are two keys words here: respect and collaboration. We have a great deal of respect for the Canada Revenue Agency employees who are currently working in Quebec and particularly in the regions of Quebec. Second, we are very pleased to work with Revenu Québec to make the job easier for Quebeckers.
View Luc Berthold Profile
CPC (QC)
View Luc Berthold Profile
2019-12-09 21:51 [p.167]
Madam Chair, does the President of the Treasury Board agree with his colleague that those who support a single tax return should be ashamed?
Should all members of the Quebec National Assembly be ashamed for asking for a single tax return?
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