What they said. What they meant.

Plain-language translations from the House of Commons.

Recent debates

8 latest topics

Oral Questions

The Economy

The economy's in a bit of a slump, so the Conservatives asked the Prime Minister about it. But he didn't answer - instead, his backbenchers talked about a trade war, infrastructure spending, and how the Conservatives have no plan. The Prime Minister mostly stayed quiet except to say some things that weren't true, according to Statistics Canada. Then a Liberal talked about how great farming is, and another talked about funding for small craft harbours, which apparently is really important for rural coastal indigenous communities.

Official Hansard ↗

Hon. Pierre Poilievre

Conservative
“The Liberals keep making excuses for the recession. First they blamed the world, but other countries are doing fine. Now they blame low immigration, but our GDP per person is the worst in the G7. It's their fault, not the world's.”
Our translation 65% shorter

Hon. Pierre Poilievre

Conservative
“The other party made a mess. You should blame them, not me. Can you defend that? No? I didn't think so.”
Our translation 83% shorter

Hon. Pierre Poilievre

Conservative
“The Prime Minister is wrong and hiding from his own words. Investment is down for the fifth quarter in a row. Is this the 'master economist's' definition of a recession? Yes or no?”
Our translation 63% shorter

Hon. Pierre Poilievre

Conservative
“You can't defend your economic record. A few supporters get rich from your spending while everyone else pays for it. Answer the question: are we in a recession or not?”
Our translation 75% shorter

Hon. Pierre Poilievre

Conservative
“You said the Prime Minister is an economic genius. But Canada's the only G7 country in a recession. He can't fix the recession if he won't admit there is one. Will the Prime Minister admit we're in a recession?”
Our translation 72% shorter