Budget 2023: Liberals follow through on big promises in deal with NDP
Budget 2023: Liberals follow through on big promises in deal with NDP
OTTAWA -
The Liberal government has continued to fulfil its promises to the NDP within its second federal budget since the parties struck a confidence-and-supply agreement in March 2022.
New Democrats have agreed to prop up the minority government on key votes, including budgets, until June 2025 in exchange for movement on shared priorities.
Here are the key NDP-approved initiatives that were penned into the agreement and made it into this year's budget:
Dental care: More than $13 billion, including an initial $107 million in 2023-24, is earmarked over the next five years to create a new Canadian dental care plan. The measure aims to provide dental coverage for uninsured Canadians who have an annual family income of less than $90,000, with no co-pays for those with family incomes under $70,000. The new coverage is projected to begin by the end of the year and be administered by Health Canada.
GST rebate: The federal government expects to spend nearly $2.5 billion this year on an affordability measure dubbed the "grocery store rebate." The one-time payment will double the GST rebate for eligible Canadians. It's a repeat of the same measure the Liberals introduced last fall with NDP support, and it will again provide up to an extra $467 for eligible couples with two; $234 for single Canadians without children; and $225 for seniors.
Missing and murdered Indigenous women and girls: The Liberals expect to spend $2.5 million over the next five years, starting in 2023-24, to establish a federal-provincial-territorial table on "Missing and Murdered Indigenous Women, Girls and 2SLGBTQI+ People." The budget describes it as providing a forum to discuss and act on initiatives such as a "Red Dress Alert" to notify the public when and Indigenous woman or two-spirit person goes missing. The measure is part of a $125 envelope of funding for other measures related to missing and murdered Indigenous women and girls.
Anti-scab legislation: The budget says the government plans to propose changes to the Canada Labour Code this year that would prohibit replacement workers during a strike or lockout in federally regulated sectors.
Green economy: The federal government is promising to offer nearly $83 billion in tax credits until 2034-35 to expand green industrialism in an effort to create Canadian jobs, address global supply-chain issues, and further reduce emissions.
Good-paying (union) jobs: The government is attaching new labour conditions to federal funding, in part so "the unions that built the middle class can thrive," as the budget document puts it. For companies to receive maximum energy and electricity tax credits, they will need to ensure that wages are paid at the prevailing level and apprenticeship training opportunities are being created.
Indigenous housing: The federal government expects to spend $1.9 billion over the next five years to implement an urban, rural and northern Indigenous housing strategy, to be co-developed with Indigenous Peoples. The money won't start flowing until 2024-25, starting with a $300-million investment for that fiscal year.
Beneficial ownership registry: A proposed bill recently tabled in the House of Commons would prevent Canadian shell companies from concealing their ownership of property, businesses and other assets. The registry would allow people to publicly search Canadian corporations and their ownership. It aims to deter money laundering and prevent companies from evading sanctions or avoiding paying taxes. The budget document commits the government to implementing it by the end of 2023.
Prime Minister Justin Trudeau's efforts to assure Canadians that his government is adequately addressing the threat of foreign interference took a hit on Wednesday, when the majority of MPs in the House of Commons voted for special rapporteur David Johnston to 'step aside,' a call Johnston quickly rejected.
A New Democrat MP is trying to convince his colleagues to change the rules that govern the House of Commons in a series of ways he says would instill 'democratic controls' on the prime minister's 'unfettered' powers.
Monday morning, the Public Service Alliance of Canada announced it had reached a 'tentative' agreement with the federal government for the 120,000 picketing Treasury Board workers who, since April 19, had been engaged in one of the largest strikes in Canadian history. Here's a rundown of the developments from Parliament Hill as they happened.
The House committee studying foreign election interference heard from top 2019 and 2021 Liberal and Conservative campaign directors on Tuesday, with party officials from both camps speaking about the need for politicians to come together to address any "legislative gaps" ahead of the next vote.
In the 2023 federal budget, the government is unveiling continued deficit spending targeted at Canadians' pocketbooks, public health care and the clean economy.
Danielle Smith's win in the Alberta election hands her the most starkly divided province confronting any premier in Canada, writes commentator Don Martin.
Special rapporteur David Johnston didn't recommend public inquiry knowing it was a pathetically insufficient response for a foreign democratic assault of this magnitude, writes Don Martin in an exclusive column for CTVNews.ca.
To frame a few new illustrations on pages tucked inside a passport as proof of a Liberal plot to purge the Canadian historical record seems like a severe stretch, writes Don Martin in an exclusive column for CTVNews.ca.
Public Safety Minister Marco Mendicino is a bright former federal prosecutor, who was destined to be a star in Justin Trudeau's cabinet. But in an opinion column on CTVNews.ca, Don Martin argues Mendicino has taken a stunning fall from grace, stumbling badly on important issues just 18 months into the job.
It's the most peculiar of elections with the frontrunner and her main opponent being the same person, writes columnist Don Martin. 'In the looming Alberta showdown, it's Premier Danielle Smith versus her mouth.'
As wildfires rage across Canada in what’s being called an unprecedented season, one expert says there’s more that individuals and communities can do to adapt and prevent forest fires from causing widespread devastation.
The Supreme Court of Canada will not hear the appeal of an Alberta woman who was unwilling to be vaccinated in order to get a life-saving organ transplant.
Rescuers in Washington state are praising the resourcefulness of a 10-year-old girl who survived on her own for more than 24 hours in the rugged terrain of the Cascade mountains after getting lost while out with her family.
Air pollution from wildfires remained well above healthy levels across much of southern and northern Ontario and several communities in British Columbia and Alberta on Thursday.
As bystanders screamed for help, a man with a knife stabbed four young children at a lakeside park in the French Alps on Thursday, assaulting at least one in a stroller repeatedly. The children between 22 months and 3 years old suffered life-threatening injuries, and two adults also were wounded, authorities said.
Manitoba's premier says a potential search of a Winnipeg-area landfill for the remains of two First Nations women should be led by the federal government and families.
The hot, dry conditions that are fuelling wildfires countrywide are just the beginning of what summer could look like in Canada this year, according to Environment Canada senior climatologist Dave Phillips.
The hot, dry conditions that are fuelling wildfires countrywide are just the beginning of what summer could look like in Canada this year, according to Environment Canada senior climatologist Dave Phillips.
Manitoba's premier says a potential search of a Winnipeg-area landfill for the remains of two First Nations women should be led by the federal government and families.
A $100 million class action lawsuit launched on behalf of alleged victims of sexual abuse by Catholic clergy on Manitoulin Island has been abandoned after the victims reached individual settlements with the church.
Air pollution from wildfires remained well above healthy levels across much of southern and northern Ontario and several communities in British Columbia and Alberta on Thursday.
Quebec's public security minister preached patience on Thursday as fires continued to rage in the province's north, saying it remained unclear when more than 12,000 people displaced by the encroaching flames would be able to return home.
A replacement plane for an Air India flight diverted to Russia because of an engine problem landed in San Francisco on Thursday, carrying all passengers and crew, the airline said.
The main suspect in the 2005 disappearance of U.S. student Natalee Holloway was handed over to U.S. custody and departed Peru on a flight to the United States on Thursday, roughly a month after both countries agreed on his extradition.
About 300 infants, toddlers and older children have been rescued from an orphanage in Sudan's capital after being trapped there while fighting raged outside, aid officials said Thursday. The evacuation came after 71 children died from hunger and illness in the facility since mid-April.
An off-duty police officer who was at Florida's Parkland high school during the 2018 massacre testified Thursday at the trial of the deputy accused of not stopping the shooter, describing how he mistook gunshots for fireworks before realizing what was happening and approached unarmed.
The European Union on Thursday launched legal action against member country Poland over a contentious new law that the nationalist government claims is meant to combat Russian influence but which critics say could be used to persecute opposition politicians.
A former top adviser to the prime minister says a memo warning about Beijing's alleged targeting of Conservative MP Michael Chong was produced after he retired, but he was aware of issues in the way intelligence is handled.
Canadians who make content online are to be excluded from future regulations that the Liberal government is imposing on digital giants, a new draft policy shows.
As forest fires rage across the country, experts are sounding the alarm over the physical and psychological impacts of the wildfires and saying that they pose a serious public health issue, which individuals and governments need to acknowledge and act upon.
The Supreme Court of Canada will not hear the appeal of an Alberta woman who was unwilling to be vaccinated in order to get a life-saving organ transplant.
Internal emails from the agency tasked with regulating the price of patented drugs in Canada shows discord and division was sparked by a letter from the health minister, culminating in an indefinite pause on major drug-price reforms and several resignations.
Scientists have documented the first-known instance of a 'virgin birth' by a crocodile, which had been living in isolation for 16 years at Costa Rican zoo, according to a study published Wednesday.
The James Webb Space Telescope set its sights on a galaxy 20 million light-years away, capturing a dazzling star-forming galaxy in images streaked with the signature of passing asteroids.
Reporters are a skeptical bunch, so it was unusual to hear so many of them raving about their firsthand experience with Apple's next Big Thing: the high-priced headset called Vision Pro, a device infused with totally virtual reality as well as augmented reality that projects digital images on top of real-world settings.
A lawyer for Prince Harry finished setting out the royal's case against a newspaper publisher on Thursday, quizzing a former tabloid reporter about information inserted into stories by then-editor Piers Morgan.
The many lives of Arnold Schwarzenegger get neatly divided into three equal parts in 'Arnold,' a Netflix documentary-cum-self-led tour through his remarkable success story as bodybuilder, actor and politician, each more improbable than the other.
Parents are finding it tougher than ever to save for their children's post-secondary education, but the mainstays of post-secondary saving remain key tools, as do clear goals and plenty of planning.
Irving Oil says it’s undertaking a “strategic review” with an eye to its future. In a release Wednesday, the company says it’s looking at a number of options, including the sale of its assets.
Rescuers in Washington state are praising the resourcefulness of a 10-year-old girl who survived on her own for more than 24 hours in the rugged terrain of the Cascade mountains after getting lost while out with her family.
Blue Jays pitcher Anthony Bass said he's "in a better place moving forward" after speaking with Pride Toronto's executive director in the wake of his social media post that supported anti-2SLGBTQ+ boycotts.
On Wednesday, soccer superstar Lionel Messi said he’s going to join the Major League Soccer club Inter Miami, a blockbuster announcement that shocked the sporting world — more so since it followed rumours of a lucrative deal in Saudi Arabia and reports of a move back to Barcelona, the team that made him famous.
A group of climate activists claimed responsibility on Wednesday for deflating the tires of sport utility vehicles in Denmark's capital. More than 100 vehicles were vandalized, police said.
Insurance industry group Equite Association says vehicle theft in multiple provinces surged last year. Vehicle theft was up by 50 per cent in Quebec year over year, by 48.3 per cent in Ontario, by 34.5 per cent in Atlantic Canada and by 18.3 per cent in Alberta.
