Pursuant to notice of October 27, 2020, moved:

That the Senate of Canada call upon the Government of Canada to introduce legislation that would freeze the sessional allowances of parliamentarians for a period that the government considers appropriate in light of the economic situation and the ongoing pandemic or for a maximum period of three years.

She said: Honourable senators, two days ago, I tabled a notice of motion that reads as follows:

That the Senate of Canada call upon the Government of Canada to introduce legislation that would freeze the sessional allowances of parliamentarians for a period that the government considers appropriate in light of the economic situation and the ongoing pandemic or for a maximum period of three years.

By supporting this motion, this is the message we are sending to the government: Senators do not want their privileged position to be devoid of sensitivity and consideration for the harsh economic reality many Canadians are experiencing.

Given the devastating effects of the COVID-19 pandemic on the finances of individuals and the state, the government should take steps to ensure that parliamentarians do not get a pay raise.

I rise today to share with you the main reasons that led me to move this motion in the Upper House. As a member of the Internal Economy Committee and, more specifically, as chair of the Subcommittee on Estimates, I have seen first-hand how senators’ allowances are set and how amounts are allocated among the various Senate departments.

Our salary increase is set by law. Year in and year out, it is included in the Senate budget and the calculation is built in automatically. If we do not want to receive this allowance, the legislation must be amended.

The purpose of my motion is, therefore, to urge the government to amend the act so as to freeze the salary of parliamentarians for the fiscal year 2021-22 and, if deemed appropriate, to extend this freeze for an additional period of up to two years. Giving up the increase in our sessional allowances is a simple act, and, I will say, not a very costly one for each and every one of us. It’s a little bit over $3,000 a year.

In 2010, parliamentarians waived the increase to their sessional allowance for three consecutive fiscal periods because of the economic crisis at the time. The current economic situation is similar to that one. The Senate should communicate clearly to the government that the current economic crisis calls for the implementation of this measure once again.

The Senate, the chamber of sober second thought, can lead by example. As senators, we can be proactive about the study of the government’s response to the COVID-19 pandemic by being mindful of the impact of our sessional allowance on the state of the nation’s finances. The financial impact will not be significant, but the gesture may well be.

Allow me, esteemed colleagues, to elaborate on the primary reason I am moving this motion. It has to do with the advantages we have as Canadian senators.

It is undeniable that our status as senators comes with many benefits, including that related to our sessional allowance and the annual increase of that allowance. However, these financial benefits make no sense when they are juxtaposed with the harsh reality of many Canadians today. Many of them have lost their jobs and some industries are struggling to survive this second wave of the COVID-19 pandemic.

The current crisis, more than ever, appeals to our solidarity with and sensitivity to the socio-economic reality of Canadians. The pandemic has deepened inequalities and shed light on many of the social issues that underlie the increasing gap between rich and poor. I am thinking of systemic racism in particular. Black people are at greater risk of contracting COVID-19 and suffering the financial consequences of the pandemic than other Canadians, according to a survey conducted by Innovative Research Group Inc. in partnership with the African Canadian Civic Engagement Council.

The pandemic has also affected women more than men in the workforce. For example, according to the Ontario Chamber of Commerce, the pandemic has led to the lowest rate of women’s participation in the province’s economy in 30 years. Seniors, children and migrant workers are also among vulnerable groups that are feeling more of the negative impact of the pandemic. While it is true that this motion will not result in substantial savings, it does, however, demonstrate our solidarity with Canadians. By supporting this motion, we recognize the advantageous position we occupy in Canadian society and the fact that it is strengthened by the economic situation brought about by the COVID-19 pandemic.

In addition, I want to share with you the pertinence of presenting and supporting this motion right now. To that end, I must briefly speak of the freezing of the sessional allowance, which was adopted by Parliament in 2010, in response to the 2008-10 financial crisis. In 2010, the government of the day had introduced Bill C-9, the Jobs and Economic Growth Act. This omnibus bill included clause 1649, which replaced section 55 of the Expenditure Restraint Act. Effective July 12, 2010, section 55 provided that senators’ and members’ allowances and salaries would not be increased in the 2010-11, 2011-12 and 2012-13 fiscal years.

In response to the 2008-10 financial crisis, parliamentarians decided that the best thing to do was not to accept a salary increase for three years. Recently, certain members in the other place have publicly spoken about the fact that they would like the current government to propose a similar measure.

The current economic situation is similar to what was seen back then — some may say it’s even worse — and should therefore, at the very least, prompt an equivalent response from parliamentarians. Senators are among the main stakeholders in this debate and should express themselves transparently by taking a position on this motion.

Mindful of how the government is spending in the pandemic, the Senate must lead by example by asking the federal government to introduce legislation that would freeze the sessional allowances of parliamentarians for an appropriate period of time. The Senate has mandated the Senate Standing Committee on National Finance and the Senate Standing Committee on Social Affairs, Science and Technology to study the federal government’s response to the COVID-19 pandemic.

The Senate has also created or will be creating a new Senate committee on the lessons learned from the COVID-19 pandemic and future preparedness.

In this chamber, we often express our concerns about how much the government is spending to manage this crisis. If we support a measure to freeze our parliamentary allowances, it would show that we are concerned about our country’s finances.

Logically, the Senate must support measures that ensure responsible management of government finances. It goes without saying that the motion I have moved will do just that.

The motion I’ve proposed today calls on the government to introduce legislation that would freeze the salaries of senators and members of Parliament for a maximum of three years, or for a period that the government considers appropriate, in light of the economic situation and the ongoing pandemic.

Some may see this as a superficial or even symbolic gesture, since freezing parliamentarians’ salaries will not save a substantial amount of money. I did a quick calculation, and if you combine the amounts for the Senate and the House of Commons, we’re talking about $1.7 million a year.

However, I do believe that supporting this motion is an expression of our solidarity with Canadians during these difficult times and a demonstration that, in our work as parliamentarians, we are concerned about our status and the wealth gap that is unfortunately growing in our Canadian society.

Honourable senators, let’s stand together in supporting this motion in order to send a clear and certain signal to the government. I thank you for your attention.

I calculated for a one-year period, not 10 years. Over a period of 10 years, we’d have to do some exponential calculations, so I calculated the amount over the period of one year.

I’m not sure I understand your calculations.

When we look at the amount of money we receive, if we add in our marginal tax rate, that amount comes to roughly $3,300, but once we subtract the taxes, the amount decreases over a 10-year period.

I understand your calculations, and I could give you more significant figures. It’s an accurate calculation, very accurate, except that, since we are senators, I’m not sure it is a calculation that can be easily justified to Canadian taxpayers. Therefore, I think this calculation needs to be weighed, if I can put it that way.

Thank you for the question, senator. No, I did not go that far. I find it difficult to go as far as that.

Employees have collective agreements and, as employers, we must respect them. There are many rules in place. As you mentioned, and as I stated in my speech, this is much more symbolic than significant financially, but I believe that this motion sends a message. It sends a message to several groups and individuals who are relatively well-paid, fortunate and who are not affected in the same way by the pandemic. It is truly a symbolic message and what I am asking of the government is that it at least study this.

The other element that I would like to mention and did not discuss in my speech is that when we received a pay increase this year, at the start of the pandemic, we were asked to donate it. I thought that was a good suggestion. Since the beginning of the year, I have donated a similar amount every month but to different charities. This means that I donate this money, even though it is part of my salary and I pay income tax on it, by giving an equivalent amount. I have donated to the food bank, a local health organization and several interest groups. However, there are other ways to provide money to organizations and other groups.