The Member of Parliament for Provencher says from a Conservative perspective, they have just wrapped up a very good sitting.
Ted Falk says they were able to make lots of progress. He notes their leader Pierre Poilievre has struck the right tone and appears to be focused on the same issues that Canadians, including residents of Provencher, are concerned about.
Falk says those issues include axing the tax, building homes, fixing the budget and stopping crime.
"Those are the issues that I think resonate with Canadians, they are the issues that a lot of Canadians are faced with," notes Falk. "And that's been the focus of the Conservatives is trying to keep this Liberal government to account and it's been just one scandal after another in Ottawa."
In reflecting on what he would consider some of the negatives from the last sitting, Falk says the Liberal government tabled a budget which adds another $60 billion of new inflationary spending. He notes this will only exasperate inflation and the cost of living. With recent figures from Statistics Canada indicating that inflation is nearing three per cent, Falk says the Bank of Canada will be focused on how to keep that at two per cent.
Falk says also during the spring sitting, the Liberals raised the carbon tax by an additional 23 per cent. He notes that even though this is most notable in the cost of fuel, it also impacts expenses like heating your home or buying groceries.
Another issue that came up this sitting was foreign interference. Falk says the National Security of Intelligence Committee of Parliamentarians (NSICOP) produced a report indicating that foreign interference is something that is happening in Canada.
"Certainly, the Prime Minister was aware of this for quite some time already, chose not to address it, that's the interesting thing that came out of that report," says Falk. "But now that's getting some traction and we've certainly raised that issue this spring in the House of Commons."
The Liberals also proposed the capital gains tax increase during the spring sitting. Falk says this increase impacts the middle class disproportionately, as it taxes small businesses and middle-class Canadians.
"At the end of the day when you increase taxes, whether it's the carbon tax or the capital gains, what you do is you increase the cost of living and that's something again Canadians are going to feel in their pocketbooks and in their budgets," he points out.
Falk says during this sitting they also started probing a little further into a tool called Order Paper questions, where they can ask government departments to provide specific information about activities within their department. Falk says through things like the ArriveCAN app and the Green Slush Fund, they are finding a tremendous amount of corruption by the Liberal government to enrich their party members and also insiders.
Meanwhile, Falk says support is growing throughout Canada towards the Conservatives and their leader Pierre Poilievre. In his travels, Falk notes he hears from Canadians who say they are impressed with Poilievre and that they think he is on the right track with the issues he is raising and the solutions he is offering.
Falk says proof of this support came when the Conservatives won a by-election in the Toronto-St. Paul's riding. Falk says this has been a Liberal stronghold for more than 30 years.
"I think that's just one indication of even the swing voters and the Liberal voters are seeing that Justin Trudeau is a failed experiment and that it's time for a change," says Falk.