“I'm ignoring your specific point. Have some kind words about government support instead.”
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
Business of Supply
A wide-ranging bill to implement the Spring 2026 Economic Update, touching on everything from tax deductions for tradespeople to aviation fuel taxes to beer excise duty rates. In 5 hours of debate, MPs mostly grilled the Finance Minister on unrelated topics like ride-sharing regulation, StatsCan data collection, and election promises from 2015. Some substantive questions were asked about domestic investment levels and the bill's housing provisions, but mostly talk went in circles without many direct answers.
“I'm filling time with kind words and saying nothing anyone could pin down later.”
“I'm going to ignore your real question and just say we spent a lot of money. $56 billion sounds big, right? Surely that means we're doing enough.”
“Canadians know the world is dangerous. We must spend a lot of money to protect ourselves. Record amounts of money!”
“We found $60 billion to cut without hurting anything important. We were very careful not to cut from indigenous programs.”
“I want you to remember I spent money on it.”
“I'm glad you're here. But actually, Fatih Birol said countries want Canada's energy. We're going to build even more energy. I want you to feel good about that. And our tax credit is already enough to support renewables. We don't need to spend more. Let's keep investing in all the energy.”
“I like to talk about the things we're doing. It makes us sound good. We gave the Competition Bureau more power. And we let businesses write off investments faster. That's supposed to make them more productive. The OECD says it's a good policy.”
“My colleague said things I agree with. I'm going to talk about those things. The government should spend money to train young people. If the government spends money, more young people will become trades workers. I want the government to spend money to make this happen.”
“I want to praise the program and say it's the best. That's all I have to say.”
“I want taxpayers to subsidize car companies even more. Our delays were fine. Other countries had delays too.”
“I want to say the government is helping. I want the government to spend money. I want the government to control the industry. I want the government to get the credit.”
“I'm not going to answer your question directly. Instead, I will vaguely praise the auto sector hoping you will accept that instead of an answer.”
“I'm going to ignore your question and talk about how great our investments are.”
“I'm going to talk about good news instead of answer your question. I want people watching to think we are helping industry succeed.”
“I'm filling time with kind words and saying nothing anyone could pin down later.”
“Electric cars are the future. Of course it takes time for new technology to catch on. Tesla took 17 years to be profitable. The Model T wasn't an instant success either. We're doing what we've always done, just with new technology. Look at what manufacturers are doing around the world. Forget the talking points.”
“I'm filling time with kind words and saying nothing anyone could pin down later. I want taxpayers to spend lots of money on my preferred programs. I don't like when you question my spending.”
“I want to spend taxpayers' money to support car companies now and in the future.”
“I'm going to ignore your criticism and just repeat that our government supports the auto industry. Look at this example of a company we helped!”