Parliament In Review: June 20, 2011

Yes, it's tempting to Bruce Anderson's conjecture about the NDP with a direct rebuttal. But I hardly see the need when the next day in Parliament to be reviewed offers an ideal example of the NDP standing up for its principles rather than merely positioning itself as next in line for government. So without any further ado...

Issue of the Day

For its final opposition day of the session, the NDP had a world of policy choices at its disposal, and chose...

That, in the opinion of this House, ending seniors' poverty in Canada is fiscally feasible, and, therefore, the House calls on the government to take immediate steps to increase the Guaranteed Income Supplement sufficiently to achieve that goal.

Of course, the exact cost of ending seniors' poverty was a matter of some dispute during the course of the debate, with the NDP focusing on the CLC's estimate of $700 million per year, the Libs relying on the CCPA's number of $1.2 billion, and the Cons putting forward a $2 billion figure from the Numbers Pulled From Our [Censored] Institute.

Lest there be any doubt, the reference to the proposal being "fiscally feasible" only fed into an extensive clash over the Cons' priorities, with speakers from the NDP and other opposition parties repeatedly challenging the choice to pour money into fighter jets and corporate tax cuts instead.

Among the arguments of particular note: Glenn Thibault noted that the corporate tax cuts delivered to banks alone could have lifted every senior in Canada out of poverty; John Rafferty made the point that a more secure retirement for seniors through the GIS would also have broader economic benefits; and Marc-Andre Morin questioned how anybody making $160,000 per year can argue that a senior barely getting by on a small fraction of that just needs to budget better.

And a couple of MPs also fit the GIS debate into broader policy discussions, with Irene Mathyssen comparing the Cons' minimal GIS funding with their willingness to give away substantially more money through income splitting, while Elizabeth May raised a guaranteed annual income as an alternative.

Meanwhile, among the Cons' creative responses...

Alice Wong argued that seniors living in poverty should be happy just to have been spoken to. John Weston tried to pretend that the Cons had done enough through a caregiver tax credit - only to be met with a thorough thrashing by Robert Chisholm, who pointed out that the credit was designed to only help wealthier recipients. And Chris Warkentin argued that it's only because he's so committed to ending it that he couldn't support a motion calling for just that.

And in case that wasn't enough of a focus on poverty for the day, Jean Crowder also introduced her private member's bill to eliminate poverty in general.

Tuned Out

Tony Clement's silencing on the Cons' G8 graft and waste continued - this time to the point that Alexandre Boulerice's question about current Treasury Board cuts (which merely mentioned the Auditor General's report in a preamble) was fielded by John Baird.

In Brief

On behalf of the Cons, Deepak Obhrai took credit for setting Canada's rate of inflation. A stream of alarm and outrage from economists and business leaders alike did not ensue.

Ted Hsu was the latest to work with the theme that the Cons should provide stable funding for the eco-retrofit program - only to be met with a typical attempt to take credit for making it available temporarily. Carolyn Bennett asked whether the Cons' plan to extend human rights law to First Nations reserves would be backed by any funding, only to receive the thoroughly relevant answer that the Cons have extended human rights law to First Nations reserves. Joe Oliver responded to Romeo Saganash's question by joining the Chrysotile Talking Points Chorus. And facing questions about the perpetually changing deadlines and cost of procuring helicopters, Rona Ambrose managed to push matters back by a year in mere minutes.