“Madam Speaker, one of the great questions facing any nation is whether it trusts its people more than it trusts the government. That question lies at the heart of the economic challenges facing Canada today. For most of our history, Canada was a country where ordinary people could arrive with little more than a dollar in their pocket, work hard, take risks, build a business, buy a home, raise a family, and leave their children better off than themselves. It was not because government created prosperity. It was because government created the conditions in which prosperity could grow. New Canadians were allowed to freely create their own opportunities without too much government interference. Today, however, we see the consequence of a very different philosophy. We are told that every problem requires another government program, another regulation and another bureaucracy to oversee it all. Yet, after years of this Liberal central planning approach, Canadians are not becoming more prosperous. They are barely managing to get by. More than 112,000 jobs have disappeared in the first few months of this year. Youth unemployment has climbed above 14%. Business investment continues to flee the country, and household savings have been used up. Families are working harder while falling further behind. This is the disastrous result of a government that cannot keep its hands out of our pockets or their red tape out of our enterprises. The government seems determined to argue about whether Canada is in a technical recession. I wonder whether the Prime Minister would use that same ridiculous argument while standing beside a mother waiting in a food bank line, a young person sending out résumés with no response or a family losing their home. Canadians do not experience recession through Liberal talking points. They experience it through lost jobs, missed mortgage payments, shrinking savings accounts and the growing fear that despite working hard and playing by the rules, they are falling further behind. This recession is the logical consequence of Liberal ideology. The Liberals have a governing philosophy that believes prosperity can be designed by Ottawa in a boardroom, rather than created by millions of Canadians making decisions for themselves. When a government makes it harder to build, invest, hire or expand, it should not be a surprise when investments leave and jobs disappear. What is especially troubling is that Canada is not suffering from a lack of talent, resources, innovation or ambition. We possess all of those things in abundance. What we lack is a government that is willing to remove the barriers that prevent Canadians from putting those strengths to work. Every year it becomes more difficult to build, invest, hire or expand, because government has inserted itself into more and more areas of economic life. The result is a system that satisfies almost no one. Those paying for it feel overburdened, while those depending on it often find that it delivers less than promised. Government grows larger, yet the problems it claims to solve seem only to multiply. Adam Smith understood that prosperity is created when free people are allowed to pursue opportunity and create value for others. We know that liberty is weakened when power becomes concentrated in government institutions. One truth never changes: A nation becomes stronger when its citizens are empowered, not when they are centrally managed. After years of rising bureaucracy, rising spending, rising deficits, rising unemployment and now a recession, when will the government acknowledge that prosperity does not come from Ottawa treating citizens like incapable children, but from smart, hard-working Canadians—”
Statement grade
C
The average of Signal, Relevance, Reasoning, Respect and Clarity is 66. The grade is held to 64, 30 above Relevance. Reasoning rests on 2 conclusions, too few to hold the grade down.
64 / 100, held down by Relevance
A score under 50 is red. Choose a measurement to see where it lost points and why; choose it again to clear.
Thanks 3%Positioning 29%Claims 64%Promise 3%
This view breaks the statement into its steps and names what each one does.
Madam Speaker, Thanks · 20 wordsI want to, first of all, thank the member for Cloverdale—Langley City for her dedication to workers in her riding.ThanksPositioning · 44 wordsI can assure her that the Government of Canada is dedicated to building a robust and inclusive workforce that supports all Canadians.Vague promiseThese are serious and challenging times, and they must be met with a disciplined focus to help our country meet today’s challenges.PositioningClaims · 246 wordsIt is here that I would like to highlight the Government of Canada’s labour market development agreements and workforce development agreements.Together, these agreements provide $2.9 billion annually in training and employment assistance services delivered through provincial and territorial employment assistance offices.1These will help hundreds of thousands of Canadians upgrade their skills and find employment.In addition, new EI applicants are referred to local employment offices for customized training and employment services.This is informed by career development officers who have real-time labour market information and knowledge of local employment opportunities.However, more is needed to help Canadian workers who are affected by U.S. tariffs and global market shifts.That is why we are providing a further $570 million to the labour market development agreements to assist steel and softwood lumber workers and workers from other tariff-impacted industries.2This support will be delivered through provincial and territorial networks until 2027‑28.3For example, we have recently introduced $70.4 million in federal funding in the member opposite’s home province under the new Canada-British Columbia workforce tariff response.4It is a three-year commitment that is expected to help more than 8,000 people across the province.5This is in addition to the nearly $400 million we spend each year supporting employment programs in British Columbia.6Tariffs have created stress and uncertainty for workers, employers and communities across Canada, and that is why we are working closely with governments at all levels to strengthen local economies and protect workers’ jobs.Vague promisePositioning · 64 wordsI can assure everyone that our elbows are up.Times are tough, but we have a plan, Vague promiseand we are working together to keep our elbows up to continue supporting our economy and building Canada strong.Vague promiseWe know that our workers are at the heart of Canada’s economic strength.We are investing heavily in our people to develop greater economic resilience in all sectors.PositioningVague promiseClaims · 17 wordsIt is no secret that tariffs have hit the steel, automotive and softwood lumber sectors the hardest.Positioning · 64 wordsThat is why we are focusing on building an economy that is not reliant on one single partner.We are building a resilient economy that will help create new job opportunities for Canadian workers, an economy that remains focused on improving the outlook for Canadian workers to help them find and keep good jobs here at home.Vague promiseHelping Canadian workers is our top priority.PositioningClaims · 112 wordsThat is why our spring economic update recently announced $6 billion focused on helping workers and young people gain the skills, experience and support they need to thrive.7Canada is building big and bold.We have a plan to build no fewer than 500,000 homes each year, 8and it is called team Canada strong.It is a cornerstone of our spring economic update.It is a plan to recruit, train and hire up to 100,000 new Red Seal trades workers in the next five years, a plan that will make it easier for apprentices to learn, train and access meaningful careers.9We know there is more work to do to support Canadians, Promise · 18 wordsbut I can assure everyone that we will always be there to support Canadian employers, workers and families.Partly on pointVague promise
