Official Hansard
Mr. Speaker, it is a pleasure to rise to address the House in regard to the opposition motion before us today. It is a motion that I personally cannot support. At the end of the day, I believe the government’s policy is the right direction we should be following. There are a number of things the Conservative Party does not take into consideration. The primary one has to be the reality of what is happening around the world today. What is taking place in the Strait of Hormuz and in the Middle East is having a profound impact on prices not only here in Canada, but in fact around the world. I posed a question to the leader of the Conservative Party, and then another question was posed to him, and from my perspective, two things came out of them. The latter question posed to him was about the issue of taxes. He raised the United States and the rest of the world, saying that Canada was above the average. It is important that we get a sense of what is actually taking place in the G7 countries, which are the most industrialized countries in the world today. Our price on diesel fuel is no higher than it is in many of the other G7 countries, which includes countries such as the United Kingdom, which has England, and others. Being very selective is something the Conservatives are very good at doing when trying to draw comparisons. Canada overall is, relatively speaking, in a very okay position compared to G7 countries on the price of diesel. Can we do more? That is ultimately one of the reasons we have taken the actions we have since the spring economic update. That was one of the issues coming out of the questions for the leader of the Conservative Party. Another issue, the one I specifically asked the leader about, was in regard to the Conservatives’ position on taxation with respect to fuel. I suspect their position is even further to the right than President Trump’s, quite frankly. If we listen to what some of the Conservatives are saying, whether today or in the week prior to the break week, one could easily draw the conclusion that they believe, or at least some believe, or want to imply that we should be getting rid of all forms of gas taxes. Then they go on to give a number of reasons, which ultimately lead to farmers. That is where I would like to begin my comments, although somewhat belated. Conservatives like to talk a great deal about farmers, as if the Government of Canada has not been sympathetic to the farmers of our nation. Nothing could be further from the truth. I would challenge members across the way to indicate a prime minister who has been as aggressive, along with cabinet, in trying to pursue additional markets that go beyond the United States. I do not believe they would be able to identify a prime minister, cabinet or government caucus that has been as aggressive in pursuing export markets that ultimately will support our farmers. Let me give a good example of that. I had the opportunity to get a better understanding of what is taking place in the Philippines, because of the trade discussions happening today with Canada and the Philippines, which are led by the Prime Minister and the President of the Philippines. Agriculture is on the agenda, and that is only one of many discussions that have been taking place over the last 18 months. In fact, we have seen well over 20 trade and security agreements signed off on by the Prime Minister and this government since the last federal election. I will go to one agreement that I tie myself fairly closely to, because the Minister of International Trade has been very accommodating in listening to what I have to say about the potential between Canada and the Philippines. I am encouraged by how agriculture is being brought into the picture. I am someone who grew up in the Prairies and lived in all three prairie provinces, and I have been talking to farmers. The first farm I visited when I was 13 years old was the Stoynes farm just outside of Moose Jaw, Saskatchewan. I rode on the big tractors at 13. I understand the farming community in good part, although maybe not as well as others who are farmers and so forth, but understanding the industries has always been important to me, whether it is the canola or pork industry, which I have provided comments on in the past. I can say that the government, in particular our Minister of Agriculture, is very much on top of the file in regard to farmers, as is the Prime Minister, who also grew up in the Prairies. I suspect that if we were to have discussions with farmers, what we would find at the end of the day is that creating additional markets for their product is something they see great value in. Tell me another government that has been as aggressive at pursuing that. Another good example would be canola. My home province of Manitoba benefited because the Prime Minister took an interest in trying to take down barriers between China and Canada, which ultimately dealt with some tariffs on canola. We can talk about Farm Credit Canada and how it continues to support our farmers during what can be very challenging times. The special levy tax put on by the federal government was actually put into place by the current Prime Minister. The Conservatives like to say that it was their idea. Ultimately, the idea might have come from Wab Kinew, the Premier of Manitoba, who years ago gave a gasoline tax break to the people of Manitoba shortly after the last provincial election. The point is that it does not matter where the idea came from. What is important is that we recognize that there is a need today to deal with issues such as affordability. This is something the Prime Minister, this government and every member of the Liberal caucus understand. It is a reflection of what we are seeing and hearing within our ridings. We want to deliver for the constituents we represent, and the affordability issue is an important issue for every one of us. We are a strong, united caucus on the issue of affordability and in supporting the initiative that the Prime Minister has taken in providing direct relief through the levy on taxes on gasoline. That is not the first time. In fact, the very first action that was taken when he was selected as the leader of the Liberal Party and became the Prime Minister was getting rid of the carbon tax on gasoline. Was that 13¢ a litre or 17¢ a litre? I cannot think of the exact number. I think it was close to 17¢ a litre. Bob Zimmer: Whose idea was it? Hon. Kevin Lamoureux: Mr. Speaker, it was our current Prime Minister who actually got rid of it. The member opposite wants to challenge me and ask whose idea it was. Let me tell him something. At one time, the Conservatives were against it. They then became in favour of it and then they were against it. That is the Conservatives’ track record on it. The current Liberal leader, today’s Prime Minister, who was elected in the last federal election, made a commitment to Canadians on the issue of affordability and he is delivering on the issue of affordability in many different ways. He is not just dealing with the tax on gas, whether it is the carbon tax or the levy that has been applied. We constantly hear from members opposite, and even from my colleagues, about the importance of affordability. It has not stopped there. When we talk about affordability, this is affordability that benefits farmers. The tax break that was given, shifting from 15% to 14%, helped 22 million Canadians. To my Conservative friends, many of those people are farmers. Understanding that there are ways in which we can directly help Canadians with the price of food, we not only converted the GST rebate but, significantly, put up front literally hundreds of millions of dollars and converted it into the Canada groceries and essentials benefit. Again, we are dealing with the issue of affordability. Once again, our farmers will benefit from that program. I put it in that form because I want members to recognize that one does not have to be in the opposition to value and appreciate what our farmers do for our nation. They are the ones who provide the food on our table. I have travelled on the highway in the Prairies, where we see four, five and more combines forming a row and harvesting wheat from the fields. It is an impressive sight. In the province of Manitoba, when I think of farmers and producers, it goes beyond just the crops. I have talked about how important the pork industry is to my home province of Manitoba, from those who process it to those who have the barns and get the pork ready to be put in places like HyLife, Maple Leaf Foods and Winkler Meats. These are important people who play a critical role in food security. Food security is important to every member of the government caucus. For this reason, we often talk about why it is so important to support expanding the year-round production of things like vegetables and fruits so that we are less dependent on countries like the United States in dealing with food security. These are some of the measures the government has put in place to support our farmers and Canadians as a whole. Today, we have the Conservatives saying, “Here is our idea”, because they want to one-up, in the best way they can, what the current government is proposing, even though when they had a chance to do things like this when they were in government, they did not. Now they are in opposition and they see a government actually taking some of these initiatives, they want to say they can one-up them. No one can accurately predict what the price of fuel is going to be six months from now. We might like to think we can. This is a measure that was put in place on April 20, I believe, as part of the spring budget update. It was meant to provide temporary support, with a suspension until the Labour Day weekend. That was in Bill C-30, if members want to look it up. We are grateful that the Conservatives supported that legislation. That was great. Over the summer, going into August, a decision was made that we needed to be able to extend that tax break, which is somewhat similar to what the Province of Manitoba did when it brought in its initial price reduction on gasoline. That is exactly what Bill C-38 would do. It would allow for that extension, which incorporates diesel and gasoline. I can say it makes a very tangible difference for consumers. I am very much aware of the Bloc’s concern with respect to the issue. How can we ensure that the tax break, whether it is given by the Province of Manitoba or the federal government, is being passed on to consumers? I believe we have some of the best civil servants and independent officers of Parliament, along with different stakeholders, who can ensure that those oil companies have a sense of accountability so that, in fact, that tax break goes directly into the pockets of the consumer. That is something we take very seriously. It is the reason why we are doing it in the first place. This is a government that is not only focused on short-term relief. It is trying to resolve the problem and secure our future so that Canada can be more independent in issues of this nature. It is the reason why we had the Pacific link announcement. It is the reason why we had the LNG Canada phase two announcement. These are multi-billion-dollar announcements that are going to increase Canada’s capacity. The leader of the Green Party talked about refineries. If we want more refineries in Canada, we have to continue to do what the government is doing, which is working collaboratively with other jurisdictions. We have to create the climate that will allow for the expansion of our refineries. I think we have 16 now. Maybe it is 17. I am not 100% sure. I know Manitoba is one of the only provinces that does not have one. I would like to see private businesses, private enterprises and the provincial governments, in particular, working with the federal government on ways we can do that. This government, headed by this Prime Minister, has made it very clear that we are a government that will work collaboratively with other jurisdictions, the private sector and, in particular, investors to build a stronger and healthier Canada for all and an economy that is there for all Canadians. That is what we are all about.
