CPAC - Thursday, May 23, 2024 - 03:00 p.m. (ET) - Segment #7

territories, and Indigenous partners as we launch a national school food program that would expand access to existing school food programs and help 400,000 more children per day get good healthy food so that they can have a fair start and good health. All the while, Mr. Speaker, we have increased old age security benefits for seniors aged 75 and older by 10%. As of July 2022. Which is providing more than 800,000 -- excuse me, $800 in additional support to full pensioners. Our government has gone even further to make life more affordable to those Canadians who need it the most, including by doubling the GST credit for six months in the fall of 2022 and by delivering a one-time grocery rebate in July of 2023. We also delivered the first enhanced quarterly Canada workers benefit payment on July 28, 2023, to our lowest paid and often most essential workers. With the family receiving a total benefit of up to $2,616 last year. Our new Canadian disability benefit will increase fiscal well-being of low income Canadians with disabilities in every region of the country. On top of this laundry list of measures, I just mentioned, we also -- we're also working with the provinces and territories to deliver improved health care to Canadians. Last year we committed nearly $200 billion over ten years to strengthen public health care for Canadians including record health transfers and tailored bilateral agreements. This year we introduced legislation to launch the first phase of national universal pharmacare in Canada which will provide universal single payer coverage for a number of contraception and diabetes medications and of course we are making historic investments in affordable dental care which is essential not only for oral health but for overall health. In December the new Canadian dental care plan began enrollment and it is expected to support by next year 9 million uninsured Canadians with a family income of less than $90,000. Eligible seniors aged 65 and older are already able to apply and in June applications will open to children under 18 and to persons with a valid disability tax credit. Kids under 12 are already covered by the interim Canada dental benefit which launched in December 2022 and is already supported nearly half a million children. Already more than 400 million have been repaid -- 400 million has been repaid to parents, money that families were able to use for things that were important to them, knowing that their children have received the care that they need. Moreover, thanks to the Federal Government's efforts to work with provinces and territories to build more housing faster across Canada. We are together on track to build nearly 4 million homes by the end of 2031. To help get this done we're cutting federal taxes to new federal apartment developments, cutting red tape and reforming zoning in cities and towns and providing direct low cost financing to builders. We're also making it easier for Canadians to buy a home and supporting Canadians who rent their own home. For example, to help renters facing skyrocketing rents across the country, the 2024 budget proposes a new Canadian renters' bill of rights. A new 15 million-dollar tenant protection fund and a new $1.5 billion Canada rental protection fund that would help affordable housing providers keep rents at a stable level for the long term. For Canadians saving for their first home, especially millennials and Gen-Z, our tax-free first home savings account continues to make a real difference. And our new Canadian mortgage charter will help Canadians receive better support from their banks when facing financial difficulties so that they request make payments on time and stay in their hard-earned homes. We will keep working to accelerate housing construction and lower prices for Canadian buyers and renters and we will continue calling on provinces, territories, and municipalities to do everything that they can do to build more homes faster. Because that is what Canadians need from us and it's what they

deserve. We have been relentless in our efforts to work with provinces and territories to build a better, fairer Canada. And this work has certainly paid off. But we need to keep this momentum going. By collaborating with our partners across all levels of government, we can continue to drive our economy towards growth that lifts everyone up and we will keep the promise of Canada within reach of everyone. Therefore I encourage my honourable members in this house today to reject today's ill-conceived motion, Mr. Speaker. Thank you. >> The Speaker: Questions and comments. [Voice of Interpreter]: The Honourable member for Longueuil--Saint Hubert. >> [Voice of Interpreter]: Inaudible. 4 million housing units by 2031, 200,000 were built last year and that was almost a record, 39,000 in Québec. So how many would need to be built 4 million by 2031 would be 600,000 per year. That's about three time the best performance ever achieved in Canada. I'd like to have an idea of what my colleague is talking about. >> The Speaker: [Voice of Interpreter]: The honourable parliamentary secretary. >> Thank you, Mr. Speaker. I thank the member opposite for the opportunity to answer the question. He's not wrong. This is a huge challenge that is before us. Nobody is suggesting otherwise. Nobody is suggesting that this is going to be easy. Nobody is suggesting that we can do this on our own at the Federal Government. The question that should be asked of that speaker is, quite frankly, why are we not all focused on the same issue. Does he not see the demand, does he not see the need for these homes? Does he not see the need for us to get absolutely down in the dirt serious about solving this issue of housing in Canada? We know this problem exists, we know the challenge exists. This government is up for that challenge, Mr. Speaker. This government will rise to that challenge. Thank you. >> The Speaker: Questions and comments. The Honourable member for Pitt Meadows Maple Pitt Meadows--Maple Ridge. >> Mr. Speaker, I'm just having a real challenge with this member talking about what a utopia the rivals and NDP have brought our country and seems -- our Liberals and NDP have brought our country and seems like they're totally disconnected with what's happening on the streets. They don't see the millions more people going to food banks, doubling of housing costs, and he talks about program after program. Well, it's not the Liberal money; this is taxpayers' money. And it is very difficult quality of life is going down. So just wonder if the member will recognize that what they've been doing is relentless in undermining and ruining our country. >> The Speaker: The honourable parliamentary secretary to the minister of small Minister of Small Business. >> Obviously I reject the premise of that question, Mr. Speaker. And I know that the member was not part of the previous government but I do have to remind him that the previous government just simply didn't answer the phone when the provinces called. They didn't. We know this. We know that there was a complete detachment between the Federal Government and the provinces. We had the provinces clamouring for support. When we were first elected, they were pounding on our doors for support. We know this. We remember this. We do not want to go back to a scenario where the Federal Government simply will not even pick up the phone when the provinces are saying hey, we have a crisis. So yes, we have stepped up. Yes, we have invested incredible amounts of money to fix some of the problems we inherited and we still need to continue to work with the provinces and territories to ensure that we are doing this together. This is not about the Federal Government coming in and Ottawa knows best scenario. That is not what anybody wants to see. We know that we have to work together to solve these big issues, and I know that our government is prepared to do that. Thank you. >> The Speaker: Questions and comments. The Honourable member for Hamilton Centre. >> Thank you very much, Mr. Speaker. The member spoke at length about this Liberal government's expansive budget and, you know, obviously what's before us today is this idea of exclusive jurisdiction yet when we deal with things like health care there's clearly a shared responsibility, Mr. Speaker. And there is an opportunity to have conditions when it comes to national service standards. We know that the condition for the worker is also the patient condition. I want to reference to you the worker -- the conditions of support workers, particularly in long-term care. They were the backbone of our seniors care system and despite everything they did for our elders through COVID, many of them are unable to retire with dignity. So for three years this government has promised these workers help with building their retirement savings plan and it made promises in 2020 in the fall statement, in the 2021 budget, in the 2023 budget which

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