“I don't want to spend this half hour on questions. I want you to explain why this bill is different. Your other programs had a lot of spending and bureaucracy. They didn't make housing more affordable. What will this one do that's new? Your lack of results so far is obvious. Why should we expect that to change?”
What they said. What they meant.
Plain-language translations from the House of Commons.
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Government Business No. 11—Proceedings on Bill C-26
A bill to give $1.7 billion to provinces and territories to somehow boost housing supply. The Liberals insisted this was simple and speedy while the Conservatives lamented the lack of time to properly study or debate the bill at any stage. The Liberals blamed previous governments and touted action in Ontario to eliminate the HST.
“Will your housing subsidy money actually go to small towns? Or will you forget rural Canada like last time? Liberals always forget everyone except big cities.”
“I am criticizing the Prime Minister for eroding parliamentary democracy. He is never here, but he is imposing draconian measures to shut down debate on Bill C-26 at all stages, with no committee study or amendments. This is an unconscionable attack on the processes that defend the rights and liberties of Canadians. The Liberals want to shut down debate completely. I am asking the minister how he can justify this drastic use of shutting down the procedure at all stages, with no possibility for debate, study, or amendment.”
“Housing prices have doubled. Inflation is high. The cost of living is going up. There is too much red tape. Liberals caused all those problems. Now their solution is more spending and red tape. That's exactly what they did before. It won't work.”
“I don't like that the government keeps passing bills without proper study and debate. This bill affects a very important area of policy, and rushing it through could have serious unintended consequences like we've seen with other bills. The government should slow down and let Canadians have a real debate on this bill.”
“I'm alarmed. This bill gives a minister $1.7 billion with no rules or oversight attached. It's a blank cheque in the name of housing. Zero transparency, just trust us, while prior funds went nowhere. I want scrutiny before the House okays billions more for a minister to spend however he wants.”
“I don't trust this government to get first nations housing right. They throw money around and never mind the details. I want some actual specifics. Otherwise it's just opening a tap, pouring out billions in public money, and no way to know if it's being spent smart. We've been burned before.”
“You're cutting off debate to ram this bill through at every stage. I bet it's because the housing minister is afraid to come talk to the committee. Since this motion will pass, I dare you to spend one hour with our committee to actually talk about this. Yes or no?”
“I think debate should continue because skipping it cuts out both MPs' speeches and Canadians' own input at the committee. The government should want to hear from Canadians to get those diverse views.”
“This housing crisis is your fault. I told you so. Your plan spends $1.7 billion with no accountability. Stop dodging my question. Explain how you'll measure if the new money is spent well.”
“I want to look fiscally responsible by opposing more spending. I need you to look like you haven't done your job. I want you to admit this money won't build many actual homes. Then maybe I can say we should debate it to death instead.”