Tag Archives: Budget 2022

Roundup: The fiscal stance is tight

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The Parliamentary Budget Officer was doing his actual job of providing alternative fiscal forecasts for Parliamentarians, and his projection of the economic situation is that growth will slow over the second half of this year, which isn’t a bad thing because it will help to tackle inflation, particularly as the Bank of Canada continues to raise rates. The deficit continues to shrink, as does the federal debt-to-GDP ratio, which shows our fiscal stance is not too loose.

Here’s economist Kevin Milligan putting things into more context, but the bottom line is that the Conservatives’ assertion that government spending is fuelling inflation is not true, and they need to come up with some more credible talking points. (Yeah, yeah, good luck with that one, I know).

https://twitter.com/kevinmilligan/status/1580598737906597894

https://twitter.com/kevinmilligan/status/1580602979140632576

https://twitter.com/kevinmilligan/status/1580605473476476929

Ukraine Dispatch, Day 232:

It was another day of Russian strikes against civilian targets, including by Iranian-built kamikaze drones, while Volodymyr Zelenskyy continues to request more air defence systems to protect the country. Ukrainian forces boasted that they took down four Russian helicopters in the space of eighteen minutes.

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Roundup: Tagging the misogynists to own the Libs

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News broke yesterday morning from Global that videos on Pierre Poilievre’s YouTube channel contained hidden tags including #mgtow (Men Going Their Own Way), which is considered so misogynistic that even Reddit has banned it. This anti-feminist movement includes incels who have perpetrated mass murder in this country. But it’s not like Poilievre hasn’t been playing footsies with other extremist elements in this country, right? Right?

https://twitter.com/StephanieCarvin/status/1578020907876249600

In the wake of the revelation, Poilievre was forced to address it in Question Period, where he denounced the “organisation,” which isn’t an organisation, and said that he denounces misogyny, and then began engaging in whataboutism and trying to attack the prime minister instead. There was no actual apology, and his insistence that because he ensured that the tags were removed and he denounced misogyny, that’s enough. His caucus was telling media on their way out of the West Block that Poilievre “took responsibility” and that was more than Trudeau ever did, which is wrong on both counts. There was no responsibility taken—mere hours later, Poilievre’s office said they weren’t going to investigate and basically shrugged about who could have possibly done this (the answer is starting to look pretty obvious), and he has done zero work of trying to remedy his tendency of flirting with these extremist elements, whereas Trudeau has put in the work when it comes to combatting racism.

Ukraine Dispatch, Day 225:

Russian forces shelled an apartment block in Zaporizhzhia, in spite of the fact that they “annexed” the territory, while the Ukrainian counter-offensive continues. Sweden, meanwhile, has found evidence of detonations along the Nordstream pipelines, pointing to Russian sabotage.

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QP: Trudeau attacks Poilievre’s incel connection

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The prime minister was present on a Thursday, which is rare, but I’ll take what I can get. Pierre Poilievre led off in French, and worried about families who can’t afford Thanksgiving dinner this year, blaming carbon prices even though that’s not the driver of food price inflation. Justin Trudeau responded that they knew Canadians were struggling with the global inflation crisis, which is why the proposed measures like the GST rebate, and demanded support for rental supports and dental care for kids. They went another round of the same in English, and Poilievre listed increasing food prices, and insisted this was about the carbon price, and Trudeau tried to shame him about not supporting “kids’ smiles” before he launched into an attack on the news report that Poilievre had been tagging his YouTube videos to appeal to incels. Poilievre stated that he “condemns this organisation” (they’re not an organisation) and insisted that he condemns all misogyny and hit back about Jody Wilson-Raybould and Blackface, because of course he did. Trudeau pressed on about Poilievre appealing to incels, to which Poilievre again insisted that he corrected the problem and repeated the accusations about the prime minister. Trudeau noted that a lot of admiration was given for Poilievre’s videos during the leadership campaign, and he once again pushed on Poilievre playing too closely to extremists.

Yves-François Blanchet led for the Bloc, and he demanded to know the prime minister’s intentions at Roxham Road, accusing him of increasing migrants in Quebec against their consent and of endangering French. Trudeau picked up a script to deliver some talking points about working with the French government around immigration and the protection of French. Blanchet denounced the policies that favour cheap labour (erm, you know the reliance of your province on temporary foreign workers), and demanded the unredacted contracts for Roxham Road facilities. Trudeau, extemporaneously, reminded him that Quebec already has all of the immigration powers they need and can increase francophone immigration if they want to.

Alexandre Boulerice rose for the NDP, and he listed grocery oligopoly CEO salaries before demanding the government stop the “greed-flation” of grocery chains. Trudeau listed the actions they have taken to help low-income people, and stated that they are strengthening the Competition Act. Peter Julian took over in English to repeat the question, and Trudeau repeated his same points.

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QP: Triple, triple, triple the bluster and the bromides

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The prime minister was present for the first time in a week, and it was nearly a full Chamber for a change. Pierre Poilievre led off in French, and he worried about stories of students accessing food banks, and blamed food price inflation on carbon prices, which is largely false, and demanded the “triple, triple, triple” carbon price be cancelled. Justin Trudeau responded with a warning about how serious climate change is, as we have seen up close. Poilievre switched to English to cite a farm family who was allegedly being crushed by carbon prices, and recited his “triple, triple, triple” line. Trudeau stated that clever slogans won’t help people, but his government had a plan to, and demanded support for the rental and dental supports. Poilievre reiterated his question, and Trudeau reminded him that he just returned from Atlantic Canada, and that these kinds of storms are going to become more frequent, before reciting the lines about not being free to pollute, and that most families get more back in rebates than they spend. Poilievre tried to turn this onto the prime minister using his “private jet” (it’s not a private jet) and that he was a “high-carbon hypocrite,” to which Trudeau lambasted Poilievre’s lack of a climate plan. Poilievre spun a ridiculous tale about the government driving food production out of the country, and Trudeau hit back that if Poilievre put as much energy into flighting climate change as he did spinning conspiracy theories, we would all be better off.

Yves-François Blanchet led for the Bloc, and he demanded that all immigration powers be turned over to Quebec because French is under threat. Trudeau reminded him that Quebec has all the immigration tools they need, and if they want to increase Francophone immigration, they were welcome to. Blanchet repeated his demand, reminding Trudeau of the size of François Legault’s majority, and Trudeau repeated his answer.

Jagmeet Singh rose for the NDP, and in French, he accused the government of protecting oil and gas profits, and Trudeau recited some pabulum about asking the rich to pay more to reduce taxes for the Middle Class™, which is why it was the very first thing they did. Singh repeated the question in English, and Trudeau stated that oil companies have been warned that they need to start paying for the green transition.

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QP: Triple, triple, triple the clip-gathering

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The prime minister was in Halifax to announce new support programmes for those who were affected by Hurricane Fiona, but his deputy was present. Pierre Poilievre led off in French, and he cited a faux report that half of Canadians are $200 away from insolvency, which is not actually true, and accused the government of raising taxes, returning his false “triple, triple, triple” the carbon price line. Chrystia Freeland praised their solution of the doubled GST rebate, and called on the opposition to support their other measures. There was another round of the exact same in English, and then Poilievre lamented high gas prices. Freeland again called on the rest of the House to support the rental support and dental care provisions. Poilievre pivoted to the downing of Flight PS752 1000 days ago, and insisted that it was legal for them to plan a similar plot, which is absurd and wrong. Marco Mendicino gave a pro forma condemnation of the downing before insisting that Canada is not a safe haven for terrorism. Poilievre disputed this, and demanded that the IRGC be listed a a terrorist group, to which Mendicino called on all members to stand with the families, and listed actions they have taken for those families.

Alain Therrien led for the Bloc, and he accused the government of changing EI rules for seasonal workers, to which Carla Qualtrough said that benefits continue to remain available as the pilot project has been extended to 2023, and broader reforms are coming. Therrien insisted that seasonal workers didn’t qualify, and Qualtrough reiterated her answer.

Jagmeet Singh rose for the NDP, and in French, demanded that tax loopholes be closed for the “ultra rich” (because it’s just that simple, you see). Freeland reminded him that they have taken measures to ensure that the rich pay their fair share, particularly banks and insurance companies, and note their luxury tax. Singh repeated the question in English, and Peter Fragiskatos reminded him that $1 billion has been invested in combatting tax evasion, including audits related to the Panama Papers.

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Roundup: Independent thought alarm, Iran edition

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I hear the independent thought alarm sounding as Liberal MP Ali Ehsassi, who is Iranian-Canadian, is being critical of the government’s response when it comes to sanctions on the Iranian regime, and he wants them to do more. This being said, he has stressed that the minister, Mélanie Joly, has been very receptive to talking to him about the situation, and hearing his ideas, but that wasn’t of any interest to the CBC. No, they were interested in the narrative that even Liberal MPs aren’t happy with the government’s moves to date on sanctioning the Iranian regime, and lo, they put on an “expert” who says the government should do more, in spite of the fact that the don’t have the actual capacity to enforce more sanctions, let alone monitor the entire Iranian Revolutionary Guard Corps.

I don’t expect the party to come down on Ehsassi for this, and the Liberals have demonstrated that they are willing to put up with a certain degree of independence from their MPs (more so than pretty much any other party right now), but I always find the reaction of the media interesting in situations like this, because as much as they claim they want more independence for MPs, when it gets demonstrated, they immediately start acting like this is either an attack on the government/prime minister, and they try to wedge it as much as possible to make it sound exciting. But all this really does is crack the whip without the party Whip ever needing to do a thing, because the media is enforcing discipline more than he ever could. Some members of the media should probably reflect on that fact

Ukraine Dispatch, Day 222:

Ukrainian forces have made a major breakthrough in the south, advancing along the Dnipro River and threatening Russian supply lines in the region. In the northeast, the liberation of Lyman is providing a staging ground to press into the Donbas region.

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QP: More outrage clips about the carbon price

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While Justin Trudeau was in the Magdalen Islands to survey Hurricane Fiona damage there, his deputy was once again in the House of Commons for yet another round of the same talking points, back and forth. Pierre Poilievre led off in French, and worried that the federal government was somehow hindering Quebec’s ability to build new hydroelectric dams to produce green electricity to power electric cars. Chrystia Freeland dismissed this as the Conservatives not having a plan for the environment. Poilievre shot back that the government doesn’t have an environment plan, but only a tax plan and that they have not met any reduction target (as though his government didn’t sabotage those efforts at every turn), and then complained about the carbon price in places like BC. Freeland reiterated that the Conservatives don’t have an environmental plan, but only a plan to plunder pensions and hurt Canadians. Poilievre tried his “JustInflation” line again and accused the government of raising taxes on paycheques, which are not taxes. Freeland said the Conservatives are only good for strutting but only want to drain pensions and keep kids from going to the dentist. Poilievre cited a poll that says that 51 percent of people are struggling to eat, and accused the government of being out of tough. Freeland said that the Conservatives were out of touch for a plan to raid pensions and slash EI, or to not have a plan for the climate as our customers—the US and the EU—will only buy our products if we have a climate plan. Poilievre tried again, trying to feign a tone of unctuous concern for people who can’t eat or find a home, but Freeland listed the actions they have taken which have reduced poverty, and finished off with a Bitcoin dig.

Yves-François Blanchet led for the Bloc, and he worried about Roxham Road, saying the quiet part out loud in worrying about “cultural integration,” and wanted an Ethics Committee investigation on the CBSA contracts at the crossing. Freeland responded with a paean about the importance of immigration to our economy and in the strength of the refugee system. Blanchet chided her that Roxham Road is not about labour but humanitarian efforts—which is true—and demanded the contracts all be tabled publicly. Freeland said that as a border issue, they are working with the Americans, including on the Safe Third Country Agreement.

Jagmeet Singh rose for the NDP, and said that he would be meeting with Autumn Pelletier about her petition about clean water for Indigenous communities. Freeland very slowly noted that as wonderful as Canada is, it has an original sin of our treatment of Indigenous people, and the government was working to rectify that. Singh repeated the question in French, and Freeland reminded him that they have invested heavily and there is still more work to do.

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QP: Those “heartless” increases to pensions and safety-nets

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The PM was in Newfoundland and Labrador to survey more damage from Hurricane Fiona, but his deputy was present today. Pierre Poilievre led off in French, and once again, misleadingly insisted that deficits and government debt were fuelling inflation—not actually true—and demanded the government cap spending to fight inflation. Chrystia Freeland recited that the latest Fiscal Monitor shows the government is currently $6 billion in surplus, and that we have the lowest deficit and debt in the G7. Poilievre repeated the question in English, and Freeland repeated her answer extemporaneously rather than reading a script. Poilievre turned to the increasing carbon price, to which Freeland recited the rebates for Ontario, the lower taxes than under the Conservatives, and threw in things like childcare as other programmes to help the government. Poilievre cited food bank usage and a dubious statistic about students  living in homeless shelters, and wanted the carbon price cut, to which Freeland accused the Conservatives of either trying to cripple pensions or raise deficits. Poilievre tried yet again on the same talking points and Freeland returned with some quips about Bitcoin.

Yves-François Blanchet led for the Bloc, made some comment about getting lemon wedges from the Governor General, before he demanded action on the situation at Roxham Road. Freeland responded with some scripted talking points about the strength of the asylum system., and workin with the Americans. Blanchet was not satisfied ,and point-blank asked why they didn’t just use existing ports of entry (as in suspending the Safe Third Country Agreement) than spending billions on new infrastructure at Roxham Road. Freeland said that the country is in need of labour, Quebec especially, and immigration was essential.

Jagmeet Singh rose for the NDP, and he once again trotted out his “greed-flation” attempt, demanding support for their committee study on grocery CEO profits. Freeland reminded him of their corporate tax increases. Singh repeated the demand in French, and got the same answer.

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QP: Yet another day of misleading about CPP and EI

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While the PM was off to see the damage of Hurricane Fiona for himself, his deputy was in the Chamber in his seat. Pierre Poilievre led off, worrying that the current prime minister has fuelled inflation through deficits and debt, then decried EI and CPP as “tax hikes,” even though we have established that they are no such thing. Chrystia Freeland thanked the Conservatives for belatedly supporting the GST rebate, and said it wasn’t too late to support their other measures. Poilievre gave a grossly misleading accounting of EI and how it works, and Freeland reminded him that EI premiums are lower now than they were when Poilievre was the minister. Poilievre continued to falsely insist that EI wasn’t going to payouts but to government funds, and Freeland again repeated that premiums remain lower than when the Conservatives were in charge. Poilievre then concern trolled about the carbon price increasing, neglecting to mention that the rebates will also increase, and Freeland accused the Conservatives of planning to eviscerate pensions. Poilievre disputed this characterisation and tried again on the carbon price, to which Freeland said that he didn’t have a credible climate plan which means he doesn’t have a credible economic plan.

Alain Therrien led for the Bloc, and accused the government of turning Roxham Road into a permanent facility, saying that the government wants it to last, and Freeland read a script about believing in the strength of the asylum system and working with the Americans on issues relate to the common border. Therrien accused this of being a racket benefitting Liberal donors, and Freeland insisted that they need to work together on immigration. 

Jagmeet Singh rose for the NDP, and demanded that the federal government force telecommunications companies to build robust infrastructure that won’t be cut off after a hurricane. (Really?) Freeland gave some assurances that they will help the Atlantic provinces rebuild, and they are working to help these companies restore cell service. Singh repeated the question in French, and got the same response from Freeland in French.

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QP: Freeland steps up to call out Poilievre’s false tax claims

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While the prime minister was still at the UN General Assembly, his deputy was present today, so it was hoped we would get a better series of exchanges. Fingers crossed. Poilievre led off with his same talking points about the share of paycheques being devoted to housing, and demanded that “tax hikes” be cancelled. In response, Chrystia Freeland responded by reading a script about the role of the opposition in a Westminster system, but whatever point she was trying to make got lost. Poilievre switched to English to repeat same question, and Freeland noted that since EI premiums were mentioned, she pointed out that when Poilievre was the employment minister, premiums were $1.81, while they will soon be $1.61. Poilievre retorted with combined CPP and EI figures to show that they are higher overall, and Freeland lectured him that EI and CPP are deferred income, they don’t go to general revenue, they are the safety nets for Canadians. Poilievre insisted that the government was trying to raise CPP so its surplus could go to general revenue, and decried inflation and these so-called tax increases. Freeland said that it was irresponsible to talk down the economy, but Canada is better positioned than any country in the world. Poilievre insisted that thirty-year-olds in their parents’ basements would disagree with the rosy assessment of the economic picture, and Freeland pointed out that the government has measures for people in need, while the Conservatives have irresponsible plans, like investing in Bitcoin.

Yves-François Blanchet led for the Bloc, and he congratulated Poilievre and gave a shoutout to Alain Rayes before saying that the prime minister should take Roxham Road on his way back to Canada because it is “faster.” Freeland read a response about respecting the rights of asylum seekers, and working with the Americans on border obligations including the Safe Third Country Agreement. Blanchet suggested that when Trudeau returns, he sing his responses before he demanded the Safe Third Country Agreement be suspended and Quebec be given its own immigration powers. Freeland pointed out that Quebec does get to control its immigration levels.

Jagmeet Singh rose for the NDP, decrying rising prices, while grocery profits have increased since 2020. Freeland assured him they are ensuring that big businesses pay their fair share, including higher corporate taxes, the pandemic dividend tax for banks and insurance companies, and the new luxury tax. Singh repeated the question in French, trying to introduce the term “greed-flation,” to which Freeland repeated her response.

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