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The Economy

Question period focused on the cost of living. Conservative members said food insecurity, rising rents, gas prices, and debt were making life unaffordable for seniors, young people, and families, and called on the government to reduce spending. Liberal members pointed to measures they said help Canadians, including Build Canada Homes for affordable housing, dental care, the Canada child benefit, and Bill C-30, which ministers said would put more money in the pockets of Canadians, and asked what the Conservatives would cut.Written by AI from the debate. Updated .

Official text

10 statements

Dominique Vien

Conservative

Linked statement

“More and more people in my area cannot afford food, and charities are having to turn families away. The government's expensive policies caused this. I want the Prime Minister to help Canadians afford food and pay their bills.”
Official Hansard

Mr. Speaker, food insecurity is a very real problem. In my region of Chaudière–Appalaches, demand is skyrocketing. One food aid organization has seen a 66% surge in visitors in just three years. The situation is so critical that some organizations will soon have to tighten up their eligibility criteria and, unfortunately, turn away families and requests for help. As we know, the increase in demand is caused by this government’s costly policies. When will the Liberal Prime Minister finally help Canadians pay their bills and feed their families properly?

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Marie-Gabrielle Ménard

Liberal
“The member supports community groups, families, and women when we work together in committee. But she does not ask for those same things when she speaks here in the House.”

  • Government answer in Question Period

    Relevance 7 of 100

    None of this answer addressed the specific question that was asked.

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  • Government answer in Question Period

    Signal 29 of 100

    Much of this statement went to praise, blame, greetings, routine procedure or general stories rather than reasons, requests or specific points.

    See full analysis

  • A repeated line

    “I have a great deal of respect for my colleague.”

    Said 7 times by 6 members since April 24.

    Every time it was said
Official Hansard

Mr. Speaker, I have a great deal of respect for my colleague. We sit together on a committee and always have lively discussions. What perplexes me about her speeches in the House is that I get the impression there is a disconnect between what she advocates for in committee and what she calls for in the House. She is always very keen to support community organizations, prioritizing support for families and women, yet that is not what I hear once we are in this chamber.

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Dominique Vien

Conservative
“Rents and food prices have gone up too much. I want the government to stop spending so much money and fix the high cost of living right now.”
Official Hansard

Mr. Speaker, this government’s housing and inflation crisis is tearing families apart. Rents have jumped 3.6% in one year. Since 2021, there has been a 31% increase. Today, food insecurity is so severe that some Canadians have to spend 120% of their income just to put food on the table or pay for housing. When is this Liberal government going to put an end to its costly, out-of-control budgets and finally take the cost-of-living crisis seriously? Now would be best.

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Marie-Gabrielle Ménard

Liberal
“We take the housing crisis seriously. We created a new federal agency focused on affordable housing because people spend too much of their income on rent and homes, especially in my riding.”
Official Hansard

Mr. Speaker, we take this very seriously, particularly the housing crisis. We have established a federal agency called Build Canada Homes. It is rare for federal agencies to be created. Under this agency, the government’s priority is affordable housing. We understand that. A large portion of people’s income goes toward housing. This is especially true in the riding I represent, Hochelaga—Rosemont-Est. This is the government’s top priority.

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Joël Godin

Conservative
“Life has become too expensive for young people and seniors in my riding. Liberal programs have failed, and people are using their savings just to buy food. The government must stop wasting money and make life affordable.”
Official Hansard

Mr. Speaker, I met with many constituents of Portneuf—Jacques‑Cartier over the past few weeks, and it is glaringly obvious that the cost of living has become unaffordable. Seniors and young people are paying dearly for the effects of this Liberal government. For 10 years, the Liberals have tried program after program. Nothing has worked. Alarm bells should be ringing now that people are being forced to dip into their savings just to put food on the table. When is the Liberal Prime Minister going to stop recklessly wasting money on Canadians’ credit card and start making life more affordable for Canadians?

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Steven MacKinnon

Liberal
“The Conservatives say our spending makes life harder for people. But Canadians rely on our help for dental care, child care, and groceries. I want to know what the Conservatives' plan is to help people.”
Official Hansard

Mr. Speaker, my colleague from Hochelaga—Rosemont‑Est just asked a highly relevant question. What is inflationary spending? The Conservatives tell us that our spending is making life harder for Canadians. However, people rely on dental care. People rely on the Canada child benefit. People rely on the GST rebate for groceries. Conservative MPs seem to object to these measures, but we cannot understand why. Do they have a plan to help people, or is it all just empty opposition rhetoric?

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Joël Godin

Conservative
“Gas costs 40 cents more per litre today than it did in 2014, even though oil prices are the same. I blame Liberal policies for this. I want the Prime Minister to help Canadians afford their lives.”

  • A repeated line

    “The price of a barrel of oil was $100, but the price at the pump was only $1.34 a litre.”

    Said 3 times by 2 members since May 5.

    Every time it was said
Official Hansard

Mr. Speaker, the Liberals are out of touch, which is unfortunate. The member should have listened to my question. I will ask another one. There was a global energy crisis in 2014. The price of a barrel of oil was $100, but the price at the pump was only $1.34 a litre. That was during the Harper era. Today, the price of a barrel of oil is the same, but gas costs 40¢ more per litre. That is the result of Liberal policies. Will the Liberal Prime Minister take the bull by the horns and implement measures to help Canadians make ends meet?

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François-Philippe Champagne

Liberal
“The Conservatives should stop asking the same question and vote for this bill. It puts more money into the pockets of 12 million Canadians, including people in the member's riding.”
Official Hansard

Mr. Speaker, we will not take any lessons from those Conservatives. Rather than standing up and asking the same question over and over every day this week, my colleague, whom I respect, should instead stand up and vote in favour of Bill C-30, a bill that will put more money in the pockets of 12 million Canadians. I know people in Portneuf who will be happy about that. Will the member do the right thing for the people of Portneuf—Jacques-Cartier? I know they are listening today, and they expect their member of Parliament to stand up for them when they need some support.

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Richard Martel

Conservative
“Life is getting too expensive because of high taxes and government debt. People in my area are struggling to pay for food and rent. I want the government to stop spending so much and making life harder for families.”
Official Hansard

Mr. Speaker, the Liberals are throwing out all sorts of statistics to make us believe things are going well. However, it is always the same story: higher costs, higher taxes, more debt and more credit card spending. For me, the real statistics are what I see when I am out in my community. People constantly tell me they have to make choices just to put food on the table and pay the rent, something they never had to do before. Will the government finally get the message and stop making Canadian families pay for its costly mismanagement?

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Madeleine Chenette

Liberal
“We are acting quickly to help people in our ridings. We are building affordable housing, cutting taxes, and spending $755 million to make sports affordable for everyone.”

  • Government answer in Question Period

    Relevance 24 of 100

    None of this answer addressed the specific question that was asked.

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Official Hansard

Mr. Speaker, as my colleague explained, Build Canada Homes is there for affordable housing. We are welcoming athletes to Ottawa today and making sport affordable through a $755-million investment to make sport accessible to all. We are developing projects and programs for our society on so many issues, including tax cuts. On this side of the House, we are taking swift action to help the people in our ridings. In my riding of Thérèse‑De Blainville, I can say that organizations are thanking us for everything we are doing for our constituents.

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