Opposition MPs are preparing to review the Liberals’ latest pandemic aid package and question Finance Minister Chrystia Freeland on a myriad of economic problems.
The House of Commons’ 12-member finance committee is scheduled to meet Monday to bring the aid bill closer to a final vote before MPs leave on their vacation break in two weeks.
As part of a commitment to speed up the legislation, the Liberals agreed that Freeland would sit for at least two hours to question him before the committee.
That gives members of the opposition an opportunity to question Freeland about the problems facing the national economy and the government’s response to the pandemic in general.
NDP finance critic Daniel Blaikie, who is on the committee, says he plans to pressure Freeland on ways to reverse income-proofed benefit recoveries for seniors and low-income families whose incomes were boosted by emergency help.
The New Democrat adds that his party worries how only workers subject to lockdowns would receive income support, leaving out thousands who are still fighting.
“Liberals talk about a recovery that leaves no one behind, but that’s not what their bill does,” Blaikie said.
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“As inflation rates climb higher and Canadians struggle to pay for housing and necessities like groceries or medicine, the government’s proposed bill shows that liberals are choosing to let vulnerable Canadians go unnoticed.”
Inflation is also likely to be on the minds of Tory MPs on the committee as the party tries to attribute the problem to the government, despite pressures from a variety of global factors, including supply chain problems. .
Parliamentarians on the committee will have to decide when Freeland testifies as part of the bill’s review, but his office said Sunday the government is seeking swift action from the committee.
MPs on the finance committee are ready for the review of the Liberals’ latest pandemic aid package. #CDNPoli # Covid19
“We urge all parties and parliamentarians to work with us to quickly pass this legislation and get this support for Canadians without delay,” said Freeland spokeswoman Adrienne Vaupshas.
The bill before the committee proposes a renewal of benefits of $ 7.4 billion to send them only to workers subject to closures, and rent and salary subsidies only for the most affected companies until May 7.
The benefits for parents who must stay home with sick children, and another for workers who need days off work due to illness, would also extend until the spring.
Liberals argue that extensive income support measures and business aid are no longer necessary given the strength of the economic recovery to date.
The latest statistics from Statistics Canada showed that the economy grew at an annual rate of 5.4 percent in the third quarter of the year, just a hair below what the Bank of Canada expected.
Friday’s jobs report also showed spectacular growth in November, as the addition of 154,000 jobs for the month lowered the unemployment rate to its lowest level since COVID-19 first hit the country, and within 0.3 percentage points of pre-pandemic levels in February. 2020.
But below those numbers are pockets of weakness in sectors such as hotels and tourism, as well as an undercurrent of uncertainty from COVID-19 itself, including new variants.
“People need to know that if another lockdown is imminent, or if they need to stay home because they are sick … that there is stability there thanks to income support,” Unifor economist Kaylie Tiessen said Friday.
“That has been a really important piece to help us overcome this crisis less hit than we would have been otherwise.”
Meanwhile, Liberals are slated to introduce a bill that would reignite an earlier legislative push to repeal mandatory minimum penalties for drug offenses.
On Friday, the government gave the House of Commons procedural notice that a bill to amend the Penal Code and federal drug laws would be presented on Monday.
This Canadian Press report was first published on December 5, 2021.
Reference-www.nationalobserver.com