‘Don’t mess with moms. Get it done’: 50 prominent Canadian women urge party leaders to prioritize child care
… investing in early childhood education shows that serious investment in high-quality child care will boost economic growth while reducing poverty and drastically improving education levels among young kids. The signatories of the letter say affordability is key… A report from the CCPA recently found that a Toronto family paying full fees for a child in licensed daycare could save $10,000 more per year under the Liberal child-care plan than with the Conservatives’ tax credit… We’re waiting to see how these parties will act in office…
Child & Family
… investing in early childhood education shows that serious investment in high-quality child care will boost economic growth while reducing poverty and drastically improving education levels among young kids. The signatories of the letter say affordability is key… A report from the CCPA recently found that a Toronto family paying full fees for a child in licensed daycare could save $10,000 more per year under the Liberal child-care plan than with the Conservatives’ tax credit… We’re waiting to see how these parties will act in office…
Affordable child care will help women re-enter workforce, stimulating the economy
By subsidizing child care to women who intend to return to work, the government provides adequate social support to those who need the help the most. Such a policy will eventually help the economy to grow naturally, and will embolden consumers’ confidence to increase spending. As women return to the workforce, their increased income yields greater spending power, boosting demand for normal goods and further stimulating the economy.
Education
This federal election is an opportunity to commit to our cherished public institutions that have been created for the common good, including universities, and to ensure that they are protected from proceedings designed for private sector corporations under the BIA and CCAA acts. It is the responsibility of federal and provincial governments to ensure the health and sustainability of public institutions through appropriate instruments and regulations for the public sector.
… the interests of big banks, whose profits have soared during the pandemic, have been put squarely ahead of the university’s students, faculty and staff. Royal Bank, TD Canada Trust and the Bank of Montreal are extracting upwards of $100 million in debt repayments from Laurentian, leaving only scraps for the workers terminated without severance. The CCAA forces the most vulnerable to wait at the back of the line. This is a warning to anyone who values Canada’s public institutions.
Employment
The key to Canada’s economic recovery is obvious. Why isn’t anyone talking about it?
The federal budget estimates that a national child care program would add about 240,000 workers to the labour force. And since those workers are already here in Canada with Canadian credentials, integration into the labour force is seamless. An in-depth study of the economic impact of investing in early childhood education… shows that serious investment in high-quality child care boosts economic growth, reduces poverty, enhances equality, and sets the younger generation on a path to take on the world.
… Canada needs a modern Employment Insurance system that covers all workers, including gig workers, self-employed people and the many misclassified workers who have been abandoned on the sidelines of so-called economic progress… If the pandemic has shown anything, it’s that systemic change is needed in how we view and regulate employment, and that how we treat workers (especially those in low-wage jobs) affects us all.
Equality
… in the wake of the recent revelations of hundreds of unmarked graves being found at the site of former residential schools in Kamloops, B.C., and Marieval, Sask., the federal government now says it expects to roll out… a more “honest” portrait of the country’s past and present… the guide will include a section outlining the government’s attempts to compel Indigenous Peoples to adopt European customs through policies “designed to end Indigenous ways of life, languages and spiritual beliefs.”
Making UN Declaration law shows Canada’s commitment to Indigenous people
Bill C-15 requires regular public reporting on progress and accountability measures developed in collaboration with Indigenous peoples. Importantly, the implementation of the declaration is in line with the findings of the Truth and Reconciliation Commission and the National Inquiry into Missing and Murdered Indigenous Women and Girls Calls for Justice.
Health
Once COVID is finally tamed, Canada will have to tackle the ‘other pandemic’
Neither major party is prepared to go where an increasing number of medical and legal experts — from public health officers to those chiefs of police — say they should: taking possession of drugs for personal use out of the Criminal Code entirely. And neither party is particularly eager to talk about the opioid crisis during the election campaign… It should be getting more attention from both politicians and voters.
Canada needs a social contract for mental health
… the Canada Emergency Response Benefit was arguably the most important mental-health innovation of the pandemic because it decreased financial uncertainty, demonstrating how important government can be in improving mental health. The Canadian Medical Association has calculated that 85 per cent of our risk of illness is linked to social factors such as housing, unemployment, poverty, systemic racism, and lack of access to social supports and health services. These are the types of stresses that are interacting with COVID-19 to drive our mental-health and substance-use crisis.
Inclusion
How to repair long-term care in Canada
… the earliest victims of the pandemic were residents of LTC, our most fragile and vulnerable elders. Surely one key lesson from the pandemic is the urgent task to improve LTC so residents can live, and die, with dignity… [Charitable] foundation funding is best directed at supporting knowledge and advocacy rather than subsidizing the operation of LTC homes, a government responsibility… support for research and advocacy would be a more effective avenue for foundations to support… [or] “venture philanthropy” – specifically to demonstrate and evaluate new models of LTC care.
Decolonising is about adding, not cancelling, knowledge
UniversityWorldNews.com – story 11 September 2021. Ali Meghji The past few months in Britain have seen a growing ridiculing of calls to decolonise the curriculum. However, these criticisms have failed to understand what decolonising the curriculum is about. From the prime minister claiming that Britain needed to move on from the “cringing embarrassment” it […]
Social Security
Developing a costing for a basic income is not a neutral exercise
Creating income floors for everyone in Canada is necessary and desirable, but basic income and income floor are not synonymous… Expanding and improving social assistance, increases in targeted tax credits and benefits, strengthening Employment Insurance, stronger labour standards, and investments in public services would be less costly, more effective, and have fewer negative consequences than the suggested basic income.
Ensuring the success of Ontario’s vision for social assistance transformation
The overall vision that MCCSS has laid out for service delivery transformation is encouraging. However, it is important to recognize that the vision set out in the paper can only be realized if meaningful investments are made in public services. To that end, it does not appear that the government of Ontario has a plan to enable the vision’s success. There is only so much progress and fiscal room that can be made through streamlining administrative processes.
Governance
Would a wealth tax be effective?
There is no more efficient way to reduce inequality and boost the economy than through funding public programs that people need. All within reach are things like affordable child care, ensuring high-quality and compassionate care for our seniors, funding a just transition to the zero carbon economy, or building enough affordable housing units to meet the need… A wealth tax will help us get there by making the tax system more progressive — and that will make it more fair. – vs – Canada already has a highly progressive income tax system where upper income earners pay a disproportionately large share of taxes.
Tax the Rich: Forging a future for the many, not the few
The evidence for a wealth tax keeps increasing. As per PBO’s latest numbers, a one-time 3% tax on Canadians with net wealth over $10 million, and 5% tax on net wealth over $20 million could raise upto $82.5 billion over five years… By instituting wealth tax, a pandemic profits tax, and closing tax loopholes, Canada stands to gain over $50 billion dollars in revenue every year for #ClimateAction, expanding healthcare, bolstering social security systems, providing clean drinking water in Indigenous communities and improving infrastructure.
Recent Comments