QUESTION PERIOD — Finance
Cost of Living
October 10, 2024
Leader, as we gather with our loved ones to celebrate Thanksgiving, we must remember that life remains simply unaffordable for families all across Canada. In addition to a report on the carbon tax released earlier today, the Parliamentary Budget Officer, or PBO, released a separate report on Tuesday that looked at the purchasing power of Canadian households. The report shows inflation and high interest rates have eroded the power of Canadians’ paycheques over the last two years. This is especially true for low-income households. The richest households, however, saw their wealth grow.
Leader, what is your response to this PBO report? Do you dispute its findings?
Give people a break.
That Canadians — and too many Canadians — are still struggling is something we all deplore and regret. Inflation does take its toll. Happily and fortunately, inflation has come down dramatically, and we anticipate that the impact of inflation — now that it has come well within acceptable levels, if that’s the correct term, or at least predictable levels — will not further erode purchasing power.
With regard to other questions that have been raised in this chamber, and quite properly, about the cost of housing, the cost of food and the cost of other necessities of life, this government continues to provide support to Canadians and continues to work assiduously and responsibly to address the challenges Canadians still face.
Regardless of what you may say, leader, I know that Canadians know the PBO’s report is correct.
In September, Food Banks BC said that for the first time ever, it served 100,000 users in a single month.
The top three reasons people give for needing this help is the high cost of food and housing and low wages.
Leader, this is a consequence of the NDP-Liberal government’s inflationary spending and taxes, isn’t it?
Axe the tax.
The short answer, with great respect, is no. It’s not to deny that prices are too high for many people, but it is to deny — and I will deny it with no hesitation — that these things can all be attributed to “the government’s inflationary spending,” or whatever the phrase Hansard will reveal that you used. This is simply not true. It’s not good economics, and it doesn’t produce good social policy, though fantastic sound bites, it appears.
