“I'm filling time with kind words and saying nothing anyone could pin down later. Look at all these numbers. The economy is doing very, very well. The government is doing a great job.”
What they said. What they meant.
Plain-language translations from the House of Commons.
Recent debates
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Oral Questions
Finance
A debate about the federal budget and debt. The Conservatives accused the Liberals of excessive spending and mismanaging finances, while the Liberals defended their record and touted specific investments and projects. Much of the discussion consisted of partisan sniping and accusations rather than substantive policy debate.
“You're a big, big hypocrite for talking about hungry children. I'm mad because your party voted no on the school food program I like. Shame. I want my food program to pass and for you to feel bad for not supporting it.”
“We're spending a lot, but look at these other numbers that sound pretty good! We're doing better than some other places. You can't be mad about it if I say this.”
“I'm filling time by talking about a big expensive community center my government spent $64 million to build. It will create some construction jobs. This is what I say Canadians expect.”
“Our plan is to double exports to countries other than the U.S. in 10 years. We want Canada's energy sector, including Alberta, to play a big role. More oil is being shipped through the Trans Mountain pipeline to Asia.”
“You want to spend less? Which program in your own province should we cut first? I'd like to see you explain that to voters. We want to keep spending everywhere.”
“I'm filling time by talking about how great our military spending is. I don't want to answer the real question about government spending being too high. I'll just pretend the other side doesn't care about the military.”