Trudeau commits to record investments in Canadian children and poverty reduction

October 6, 2015

MONTREAL – Today at the Olympic Stadium, the Leader of the Liberal Party of Canada, Justin Trudeau, committed to growing our middle class by immediately investing in the hard-working parents and families who need help the most.

 “As a parent of three young kids, I know what it’s like to worry about their futures. But when we invest in our children, we build a better, healthier, more prosperous society,” said Mr. Trudeau. “Stephen Harper had ten years to make things better for struggling Canadian families, but his plan has failed. Liberals will invest now to help our families make ends meet, and in Quebec, our plan will lift 60,000 children out of poverty – enough to fill this entire stadium.”

 A new Liberal government will create the Canada Child Benefit, ensuring nine out of ten Canadian families receive more money than under Mr. Harper. This new benefit is tax-free and tied to income, so it will provide more support to those who need it most: single parents and low-income families. Liberals are also committed to ending Harper’s income splitting, which costs taxpayers $2 billion a year but delivers no benefits to working parents who earn similar salaries, and no benefits to single parents. All told, 85 percent of Canadian households do not see a cent from Mr. Harper’s income splitting scheme.

 “A Liberal government will work hard to ensure families have safe and affordable places to live, and good parks and community centres where they can play. Over the next decade, we will invest nearly $20 billion in new funding for Canada’s social infrastructure, to make these goals a reality,” said Mr. Trudeau. “This is a great country, and it deserves a better government. Liberals have the strong team and platform to make it better, and give our youngest and most vulnerable a real and fair chance to succeed.”

Additional product:

Backgrounder – Growth for the middle class