The Leader of Canada’s NDP, Jagmeet Singh, released the following statement in response to the newest interest rate hike by the Bank of Canada
MEDIA RELEASE: A seventh interest rate hike is more bad news for Canadian families
MEDIA RELEASE: A seventh interest rate hike is more bad news for Canadian families
“Today’s newest interest rate hike will continue to be devastating for Canadian families whose budgets are already stretched thin. The cost of living is already making everything harder for families and the increased interest rate will make things worse.
A report yesterday showed credit card use was up 7% from last year: people are being forced to use their credit cards and increase their household debt just to make ends meet.
Many economists, and even the Liberal government, are warning families that we are heading towards a self-inflicted recession if things don't change. As a result, hundreds of thousands of Canadians are at risk of losing their jobs if the Liberals don't tackle the rising cost of living head-on.
And while families are reevaluating their monthly budgets, the most profitable industries in Canada, including big grocery chains, are making massive profits off of Canadians without having to pay what they owe.
While the Liberals let rich CEOs off the hook, Canadians continue to carry the heavy burden of paying more for their groceries and basic necessities.
New Democrats will continue to push the government to follow other countries in implementing a windfall tax on massive profits. Canadians deserve to see the Liberal government act to lower the cost of living, and help them make ends meet.”
Latest posts
MPs question Lena Diab's performance at question period and in committee
Criticism is coming not only from opposition parties, but also from Diab's own Liberal colleagues.
Away from the cameras, 10 Liberal MPs spoke to Radio-Canada about her performance. They were granted confidentiality in order to express themselves freely.
Of those, only one defended Diab's job performance. Although several of them emphasized that she is a "good person" in charge of a "difficult" portfolio, nine MPs said they believe that the minister is overwhelmed and are openly questioning her place at the cabinet table.
"It doesn't make sense. In the House of Commons, many MPs hold their breath when she answers questions from the opposition," said one Liberal elected official.
"We're afraid she'll put her foot in her mouth."
New Democrat Jenny Kwan, her party's immigration critic, said that both Carney and Diab are responsible for how the immigration file is handled.
"That responsibility is to be responsive to stakeholders, to take these issues seriously, to examine the policies, to evaluate them, to hear from opposition and the public and look for ways to improve them," she said.
"That is their job."
Click image or link to read the news story - https://www.cbc.ca/news/politics/lena-diab-immigration-minister-criticism-9.7103914
Conservatives are capitalizing on the recent drop in public support for immigration, but risk being seen as too MAGA adjacent, say observers. Meanwhile, the immigration minister's own colleagues question her handling of the file.
The Conservatives’ defeated motion targeting health-care coverage for asylum claimants shows weaknesses on both the part of the Liberal immigration minister and the official opposition leader, with MAGA-like rhetoric posing political risk for the latter, observers say.
Jordan Leichnitz, a former NDP strategist who now works for the German non-profit Friedrich Ebert Stiftung, told The Hill Times in a Feb. 26 interview that the Conservatives’ pressure on the immigration file is a reflection of their own political fragility.
“To me, it’s a manifestation of their political weakness right now. They turn to these arguments because they’re very mobilizing for segments of their base at moments where they feel politically more vulnerable,” she said.