On Parliament Hill

While Justin Trudeau is working to avoid paying back Canadian taxpayers for his vacation, Conservatives are working hard to ensure you can (afford to) take one.

It was approximately one year ago that the news broke of Justin Trudeau’s very luxurious Christmas vacation to the Bahamas. As most Canadians are by now aware, Mr. Trudeau traveled to and stayed on a private island owned by foreign lobbyist the Aga Khan. Canada’s Ethics Commissioner investigated the Prime Minister’s actions (the first time in Canadian history that this has happened) and ruled that Mr. Trudeau broke federal conflict of interest law. Despite this ruling, Justin Trudeau continues to refuse to take responsibility for his illegal actions. The trip cost Canadian tax-payers $215,000 and Justin Trudeau refuses to pay them back. This is shameful and provides further proof that Justin Trudeau feels entitled to tax Canadians to pay for his own lavish lifestyle while the average Canadian struggles to make ends meet.

By contrast: Last week the Leader of Canada’s Conservatives, Andrew Scheer, announced his first major economic policy since being elected as Leader: tax relief for new parents.

We know that Justin Trudeau and his Liberals have already raised taxes on small businesses, farms, employee benefits and essential service providers and now they have set their sights on targeting Canadian families. The Trudeau Liberals plan to raise taxes on 2.7 million families over the next two years. In short, by 2019, more than 90% of middle-class families will pay more tax than under the previous Conservative Government.

Conservatives agree with Canadians that their taxes are too high under the Liberals and are tired of seeing them raised to pay for the boutique priorities and out of control spending of Justin Trudeau and his radical social agenda. Taxes are the price we pay for a civilized society but Canadian tax dollars should be used to benefit Canadians, not to impose an agenda that seeks to destroy the social and moral fabric of our nation.

Conservatives understand that the needs of people must come before the wants of the government. That is why Mr. Scheer is using his first economic policy to provide relief for new parents.

The arrival of a new child is a joyful occasion and one of the most important times in parents’ lives. That’s why we are supporting hardworking new parents and providing them with a little bit of relief. The Supporting New Parents Act would remove federal income tax from EI maternity and EI parental benefits by providing a non-refundable tax credit for any income earned under these two programs.

By eliminating a practice that allows the federal government to tax income that has already been taxed, parents taking time away from work following the birth of their child will be better able to handle the costs that can accompany a new baby. Canada’s Conservatives recognize that the government should not be taxing the time parents take to bond with their new child nor should it financially penalize parents for taking time off work to care for their child.

It’s a common sense policy and a clear choice. Justin Trudeau uses your tax dollars to send Justin Trudeau on a vacation. Conservatives want to give that money back so you and your family can afford to spend time together and maybe have a chance of taking one.