Close X
Friday, November 22, 2024
ADVT 
National

Liberals announce cost-of-living help

Darpan News Desk The Canadian Press, 13 Sep, 2022 09:59 AM
  • Liberals announce cost-of-living help

SAINT ANDREWS, N.B. - Liberal cabinet ministers said Tuesday the government is listening to Canadians who are struggling under the weight of inflation and entirely dismissed criticism from the new Conservative leader that they are part of a "radical woke coalition."

Prime Minister Justin Trudeau officially announced the first policies to directly respond to the cost-of-living crisis spurred by an inflation rate that has averaged almost six per cent between January and July.

Until now, the government has said it is helping through existing policies, such as child care agreements with the provinces and automatic annual increases to programs like the GST rebate and Canada Child Benefit, as well as 2021 budget promises to increase benefits for seniors and low-income workers.

Trudeau will now outline a plan to double the GST benefit, introduce a temporary dental care benefit for most families with children under 12, and provide a one-time $500 payment for low-income renters.

"We spent a lot of time listening to Canadians from coast to coast to coast this summer," Trudeau said Monday, in his opening speech to his caucus at a Liberal retreat in St. Andrews, N.B.

"We heard from parents who are worried that the high cost of groceries or eating into their savings. We heard from nurses and health-care workers, stretched, working harder than ever, feeling ground down and undervalued."

The Liberals were wary of introducing too much money into the economy to avoid driving up demand and making inflation worse. They were warned against it by several economists, including just last week by CIBC World Markets chief economist Avery Shenfeld.

He noted provinces have already begun wide-scale handouts to appease voters concerned by inflation, and warned the federal government shouldn't follow suit.

"Unless very narrowly targeted to only reach those in the most need of support to put food on the table, or even better, financed by offsetting spending cuts elsewhere, they add to the inflation pressure in the economy by increasing spending power," Shenfeld said.

Tuesday's federal announcements are targeted at lower and moderate-income Canadians.

The new inflation response plan was supposed to have been unveiled last week during a Liberal cabinet retreat in Vancouver but was delayed following the death of Queen Elizabeth II.

The Liberals have been criticized by opposition parties for months for not stepping up earlier.

NDP Leader Jagmeet Singh said in an interview that many people are going into debt to keep food on the table, and then paying higher interest rates on that debt because the Bank of Canada is raising interest rates to try and tamp down inflation.

"If you recall, as early as May we were saying to the government … those are two pressures that just make it harder for people who are already feeling squeezed. It just makes it worse," he said.

While the price of gasoline began to ease in June, the cost of basic necessities including food is up as much as 10 per cent compared to a year ago, and housing costs have also soared since the pandemic.

The new policies are all drawn from demands made by the NDP — including two that the Liberals have committed to as part of the supply and confidence agreement reached by the two parties last March.

Under that deal, the NDP agreed to support the minority government on key votes in return for the Liberals enacting some NDP priorities. Dental care and the housing benefit are explicitly included.

The NDP has also been asking the Liberals to double the GST rebate and expand the Canada Child Benefit, though those demands are not part of the deal.

"We think this is a starting point," Singh said of the announcement.

"It's something that we had fought for and we forced them to do. They would not have done this but for us, and they're not going to be able to get it passed but for us in the House. We're gonna need to have some legislation to make it happen. But we still think that (there are) other steps needed."

New Conservative Leader Pierre Poilievre is heavily critical of the supply and confidence deal, calling the Liberals and NDP a "radical woke coalition."

Liberal cabinet ministers at the retreat in New Brunswick rejected that notion.

"Frankly, I don't even know what it means to be woke," said Environment Minister Steven Guilbeault, headed into the final day of caucus meetings Tuesday.

"I'm working to serve Canadians, and Canadians have asked us for three elections in a row to do more and to do it faster when it comes to fighting climate change."

Innovation Minister François-Philippe Champagne said he is not woke, "and trust me, no one in my family believes that either."

He said the Liberal team is "fully committed to work on three things: the economy, the economy, the economy."

"That's what matters to Canadians," he said.

MORE National ARTICLES

Wildfire smoke continues to blanket parts of B.C.

Wildfire smoke continues to blanket parts of B.C.
The federal government's air quality index shows areas with the highest levels of potentially dangerous wood smoke include Cranbrook and Castelgar in southeastern B.C., the eastern Fraser Valley and the communities of Whistler and Squamish.

Wildfire smoke continues to blanket parts of B.C.

Surrey RCMP need the public's assistance in locating missing man Kamleshbhai Manek

Surrey RCMP need the public's assistance in locating missing man Kamleshbhai Manek
Kamleshbhai Manek was last seen on August 28, 2022 at 9:30 a.m., near the 13300 block of Old Yale Road in Surrey. Police are concerned for Kamleshbhai’s wellbeing as he has not made contact with his usual family/friends/ associates. Kamleshbhai is described as a 65-year-old South Asian male, 5’8”, 254 lbs with black hair and brown eyes.

Surrey RCMP need the public's assistance in locating missing man Kamleshbhai Manek

Beware of scam targeting seniors that dupes them of thousands of dollars: North Van RCMP

Beware of scam targeting seniors that dupes them of thousands of dollars: North Van RCMP
The suspect claimed that the woman’s grand daughter was arrested by police and needed $9000 to be released on bail. The fraudster then came to the victims’ home and picked up the money. In this incident, the suspect is described as a Caucasian woman between the ages of 20-30, 5’10 tall, long brown hair, slim build, wearing gold hoop earrings, a white top, tattoos on her left forearm, and having an accent.

Beware of scam targeting seniors that dupes them of thousands of dollars: North Van RCMP

King's accession ceremony Saturday at Rideau Hall

King's accession ceremony Saturday at Rideau Hall
The Heritage Department says the national ceremony will start with a memorial parade composed of Canadian Armed Forces members and RCMP officers along with a 96-gun salute — one for each year of her life — and a CF-18 flypast.

King's accession ceremony Saturday at Rideau Hall

Some diaspora members call for break with Crown

Some diaspora members call for break with Crown
Parmod Chhabra, the president of the India Canada Association, says he respected the Queen but blames the British Empire for many deaths in India when it ruled that country. Monir Hossain, the president of national Bangladeshi-Canadian Council, says the Queen made a "tremendous" contribution to the modern world but he criticizes the British Empire for colonizing Bangladesh.

Some diaspora members call for break with Crown

Canada's commemorations await details from U.K.

Canada's commemorations await details from U.K.
Canadian Heritage says it will hold a ceremony involving a televised church service, a memorial parade and a 96-gun salute and military flypast to honour and remember Canada's longest-serving head of state. Government officials say it will be the same day as the Queen's state funeral, and they are waiting for an announcement from Britain.

Canada's commemorations await details from U.K.