“I want you to agree with me that our government is very good. We got rid of one tax and moved some other taxes around to help pay for gas. Those are good things that you should cheer for.”
What they said. What they meant.
Plain-language translations from the House of Commons.
Recent debates
8 latest topics
Spring Economic Update 2026 Implementation Act
57 statements
Spring Economic Update 2026 Implementation Act
19 statements
Arab Heritage Month Act
5 statements
The Economy
15 statements
Government Priorities
2 statements
Government Priorities
2 statements
Housing
12 statements
The Environment
2 statements
Government Orders
Spring Economic Update 2026 Implementation Act
A massive bill to implement the federal budget. It touches everything from taxes to banking to food safety to the Canada Pension Plan. In debate, MPs spent time making partisan jabs, talking about their ridings, and discussing things only vaguely related to the bill, like the IMF and U.S. relations, rather than the bill's actual contents.
“You said we should cheer for your small tax changes. I want to remind everyone that you used to attack us for those same ideas. You were wrong then and only changed your mind because people agreed with us and you wanted to look good. Your gas tax change was very small. I want to talk about a long time ago when you said something different.”
“This government update doesn't spend on my preferred program! I want the government to consult us and spend money our way instead.”
“It's too bad the government won't work with us opposition parties. We should be more important! I'm going to mock them instead.”
“The government spends too much. They treat taxpayers like a piggy bank. High debt means we can't afford services.”
“A government that lives beyond its means has to pay eventually. This means more debt, more deficits, and more interest payments. Interest payments take up revenue and are a burden. The government promised it wouldn't do this in 2015, but broke that promise.”
“This bill does little to improve life for Canadians. It only gives temporary relief from high gas prices for a few months. After that, the high prices come back. It does not fix the real causes of high costs. It's just a distraction while the government avoids making hard choices. We need to permanently remove all federal taxes on fuel. That would give real savings to families, truckers, and farmers. But the government keeps spending and going into debt. This increases costs for everyone. High fuel costs and red tape are hurting family farms. The government should live within its means, like regular families do. We need to get rid of the carbon tax, cut waste, remove barriers to building homes, and develop our natural resources responsibly. This would create jobs and lower energy prices. The government should not keep spending recklessly. Canadians deserve to keep more of their own money. We need real economic growth and opportunities for everyone. This bill fails to deliver that.”
“I'm filling time by talking about world events that the other party can't control. I want to avoid defending my government's actions on the issues the other member brought up.”
“You're changing the subject because you don't want to admit my government's carbon tax and red tape are making food more expensive. I want less government so farmers can feed us for less.”
“You say you want to build homes, but you're ignoring problems in the home building industry. Will you spend on a wage subsidy and other measures so that industry can keep going?”
“You say you want homes to be built. I've talked to people in the home building industry. They tell me too many fees and rules make it hard to build. It costs too much. Cut taxes and rules. Then more homes could be built. People could afford them.”
“I say this government isn't really helping. It pretends to care. It pretends to make things affordable. But my voters don't feel helped. I bet yours don't either. It's all smoke and mirrors.”
“I'm filling time with stories because it makes my party look good. I want the government to spend less money and make things cheaper. My voters want that. I want to look like I'm fighting for them.”
“I want Canadians to feel good about our economy. We are doing a lot of things. Our economy is growing. We are giving people money. We are investing in many big projects. I hope people will like all the things we are doing.”
“You caused this problem. Now you want credit for fixing it. That's like an arsonist getting to put out their own fire. Stop pretending to be the hero. Let someone else fix it.”
“You caused a problem. Now you're taking credit for a solution. I don't like that. We're going to study it more.”
“What if this bill puts more people at risk? Do you really want that?”
“I want to look like I'm doing something without committing to anything.”
“The government is spending $7 billion on a housing program. I met some people who bought a house. Talk about our housing plans some more so we look like we're helping young people.”
“I want to spend lots of money on housing programs and brag about how much we're spending. I also want to pat my friend on the back for spending billions.”