Ottawa, ON – Today, the Hon. Erin O’Toole, Leader of Canada’s Conservatives, released his plan to lift up Canadians by doubling the Canada Workers Benefit. “Canadians are struggling, and for too long our most vulnerable workers have been left behind without the proper support to provide for themselves and their families,” said O’Toole. “Canada’s Conservatives believe that it’s time to make work pay and help those most in need.” Canada’s Recovery Plan will double the Canada Workers Benefit up to a maximum of $2,800 for individuals or $5,000 for families, paying it as a quarterly direct deposit rather than a tax refund at year-end. This will help 3.5 million families pay the bills and put food on the table. For someone earning between $12,000 and $28,000 per year, it represents a $1/hour raise. A Conservative government will also double the disability supplement from $713 to $1,500, helping almost 90,000 workers with disabilities. “Increasing this benefit and delivering it every three months will make a huge difference in the lives of low-income workers and their families, including those who are earning minimum wage,” O’Toole said. “Together, we can secure the future for working Canadians.” If you don’t care about lifting up working Canadians, you have three parties to choose from in this election. If you do, then there is only one choice – Erin O’Toole and Canada’s Conservatives.

The State of Canadian Infrastructure The centrepiece of Justin Trudeau’s 2015 campaign was his promise to invest $180 billion over 12 years in infrastructure. However, the Parliamentary Budget Office (PBO) found there was no additional infrastructure built in Canada over and above what would have otherwise been built. In fact, the Liberals allowed one-third of the infrastructure funding for their Investing in Canada Plan for 2016-2019 to sit unused. The PBO found that the infrastructure plan touted by the Liberals “does not exist.” The Canadian Infrastructure Bank (CIB) was also a key platform pledge for Justin Trudeau in 2015, promising that it would be operational by 2017 with a clear mission to invest $35 billion of federal funding in revenue-generating infrastructure projects. The PBO also found the CIB has had a limited impact since it was not successful in securing private investment and has failed to invest the billions of dollars set aside for its mandate. To date, the CIB has invested only $4.3 billion of its $35 billion budget. In fact, the CIB has made more headlines for the exorbitant bonuses it has paid its executives than for actual project investments. Unleashing Canada’s Infrastructure Spending Canada’s Conservatives will refocus Canada’s infrastructure spending on getting money out the door for shovel-ready projects. Through Canada’s Recovery Plan, Canada’s Conservatives will immediately invest in key projects that will create jobs, cut commute times, improve quality of life for Canadians, and reduce emissions. A Conservative government will make historic investments in nationally significant projects across the country, such as the SkyTrain extension to Langley (British Columbia), Ontario’s GTA transit plan, Quebec City’s Third Link (Quebec), the Calgary Green Line (Alberta) and VIA Rail’s high-frequency rail project. Canada’s Conservatives will also ensure that our infrastructure spending benefits Canadian workers by requiring that equipment and materials for federally funded infrastructure projects be purchased from Canadian companies, or from countries where there is a mutual agreement to allow workers to supply each other’s infrastructure projects. Supporting Northern Infrastructure Conservatives realize that infrastructure spending is not only needed in our urban centres, but also in our northern and rural areas. Canadians from coast to coast to coast rely on infrastructure like roads, bridges, and ports to get around, including ensuring these projects can weather the harsher conditions in Northern Canada. A Conservative government will ensure that the territories receive their fair share of infrastructure funding by reserving a funding envelope for them that accounts for the high construction costs and weather conditions in the North. Conservatives will address the Northern infrastructure gap in housing, telecommunications, transportation, energy, and climate change preparedness. Connecting more communities concurrently to the power grid, road and broadband networks will also reduce reliance on diesel fuels and improve the quality of life for residents in these communities. The Conservative plan for northern infrastructure includes: -- The Grays Bay Port and Road Project -- The Kivalliq Hydro-Fibre Line -- Completing the Tuktoyaktuk road and port -- A large-scale project to provide clean power to the Yukon, developed in partnership with the Government of the Yukon Bridging the Digital Divide The Trudeau government set up eight different federal funding programs for broadband, including the Universal Broadband Fund, Connect to Innovate, Connecting Canadians, the Canadian Radio-television and Telecommunications Commission (CRTC) Broadband Fund, rural and northern economic development funds, and funding available through the Canada Infrastructure Bank. The Liberals made numerous big-dollar broadband announcements, but like the rest of their infrastructure announcements, few projects have been funded and built as they don’t coordinate with other levels of government, or even among themselves. They also require private sector companies to jump through many regulatory hoops to get projects built. Some rural broadband projects take three to five years to get approved. Canada’s Conservatives are committed to connecting all of Canada to high-speed Internet by 2025. A Conservative government will consolidate all rural broadband programs and work with telecommunications companies to immediately begin a massive investment in rural broadband access and increased network capacity. Canada’s Conservatives will also work closely with the provinces to coordinate federal investments and ensure money goes out the door to shovel-ready projects.

Ottawa, ON — Today, the Hon. Erin O’Toole, Leader of Canada’s Conservatives, shared his plan to get government spending under control and balance the budget over the next decade. “The Trudeau government is spending $424 million a day more than we can afford and neither the Liberals nor the NDP have a plan to prevent endless deficits,” said O’Toole. “Only Canada’s Conservatives have a detailed plan to put Canada’s fiscal house in order and protect social services.” The Conservative plan to secure Canada’s finances will: -- Adopt a responsible and measured approach to balance the budget over the next decade. -- Rein in deficits to address inflation and the rising cost of necessities like groceries and gas. -- Wind down emergency pandemic supports in a responsible and compassionate way as the recovery gets underway. -- Invest in targeted stimulus measures, such as infrastructure, to create jobs and improve the quality of life of Canadians. -- Get back to robust economic growth with Canada’s Recovery Plan, a plan to grow the economy. “Canadians will have a critical choice in the coming election: to continue down the path of failure and soaring debt with the Liberals and NDP,” said O’Toole. “Or, a Conservative government that will build a stronger Canada with great jobs and rising wages. A Canada where every sector of the economy can share in the success of our great nation.”

Saint-Hyacinthe, QC – Today, the Hon. Erin O’Toole, Leader of Canada’s Conservatives, introduced his plan to rebuild Main Streets across the country and help small businesses get back on their feet and create jobs. “Canada’s small businesses employ millions of people and have been hit hard by the pandemic,” O’Toole said. “They need real support to help rebuild or restart their business and hire back workers – and that’s exactly what Canada’s Recovery Plan will deliver.” To restore the one million jobs lost during the pandemic and rebuild Canada’s Main Streets, a Conservative government will introduce the Rebuild Main Street Tax Credit. The new incentive will give Canadians an opportunity to support small businesses by providing a 25 per cent tax credit on amounts of up to $100,000 that someone personally invests in a small business over the next two years. A Conservative government will also introduce the Rebuild Main Street Business Loan, which will immediately make available interest-free loans of up to $200,000 to help small and medium businesses, with up to 25 per cent forgiven depending on revenue losses. These loans are significantly more generous than the Liberals’ $60,000 Canada Emergency Business Account loan, which fell short of the needs of thousands of eligible businesses. In addition to the Rebuild Main Street Tax Credit and the Rebuild Main Street Business Loan, Canada’s Conservatives will introduce a Canada Investment Accelerator tax credit, which will provide five per cent back for any capital investment made in 2022 and 2023, with the first $25,000 to be refundable for small businesses. “Canadian small businesses have given back to their communities in countless ways – whether it was sponsoring the local kids’ soccer team or raising money for charity,” said O’Toole. “A Conservative government will have their backs and ensure we secure the future for Canada’s Main Streets.”

Corner Brook, NL – Today, the Hon. Erin O’Toole, Leader of Canada’s Conservatives, released his plan to increase EI benefits for seriously ill workers from 26 to 52 weeks. “Canadian workers should know we have their backs if they become seriously ill,” said O’Toole. “But all too often, workers see their EI run out after 26 weeks while battling life-threatening diseases like cancer. Canadian workers and their families deserve better. It is time for the government to stand up for workers and their health.” With Canada’s Recovery Plan, Canada’s Conservatives will ensure that workers who need to take sick leave receive the support they need to recover and support their families by increasing EI sickness benefits from 26 weeks to 52 weeks for those suffering from a serious illness. “You can’t have a healthy economy without healthy workers. Canada’s Conservatives have a plan to put workers at the front of the country’s recovery and get the economy back on track,” O’Toole said. “Together, we can secure the future.”

Ottawa, ON – Today, the Hon. Erin O’Toole, Leader of Canada’s Conservatives, introduced his plan to protect gig economy workers by ensuring their access to employment insurance (EI) benefits. “Millions of Canadians don’t qualify for EI because they’re on contract or only have temporary work,” O’Toole said. “So when a crisis like COVID-19 hit, these workers had no safety net. A Conservative government will provide security to gig economy workers.” With Canada’s Recovery Plan, Canada’s Conservatives will require gig economy companies to make contributions equivalent to the Canada Pension Plan (CPP) and EI premiums into a new, portable Employee Savings Account every time they pay their workers. The money will grow tax-free and can be used to pay CPP premiums or accumulate savings that will be withdrawn by the worker when they need it. “The Canadian workplace has changed and the support Canada provides to workers must change as well,” said O’Toole. “Only Canada’s Conservatives have a plan to secure the future for Canadian workers.”

Winnipeg, MB – Today, the Hon. Erin O’Toole, Leader of Canada’s Conservatives, unveiled the Canada Job Surge Plan, a key part of Canada’s Recovery Plan that will recover the million jobs lost since the start of the pandemic by focusing on the hardest-hit sectors, incentivizing businesses to hire, reducing regulatory burden, and reforming our tax system to reward work. “Many Canadians have struggled for months to find work, especially women and young people,” said O’Toole. “As the country reopens, our top priority is getting as many people back to work in good jobs, in every part of Canada, in every sector, as quickly as possible.” Once the Canada Emergency Wage Subsidy (CEWS) ends in October, an O’Toole government will get Canadians back to work by introducing the Canada Job Surge Plan, an initiative that will pay up to 50 per cent of the salary of net new hires for six months. The wage subsidy will be at least 25 per cent and will increase based on how long a new employee has been out of work, reaching 50 per cent for those who have been unemployed for ten months or more. The Canada Job Surge Plan will apply to all sectors, but it will be especially helpful to those sectors hit first and hardest by the pandemic, such as hospitality and tourism. “The Canada Job Surge Plan is just the beginning of our plan to secure jobs across Canada, and to secure the future,” O’Toole concluded. “The Liberals, NDP and Greens don’t have a plan to get Canadians back to work. Canada’s Conservatives got us out of the last recession—we’ll get our country out of this one too.”

New transnational project to generate economic and social benefits across the country

A new Conservative government will create a national corridor to carry Canadian energy and resources from coast to coast, Conservative Leader Andrew Scheer announced today.

“It’s time for a government that understands we’re in this together, that Canada works better when we work together,” Scheer said. “A new National Energy Corridor will create jobs and opportunities while uniting Canadians in our shared potential and prosperity.”

A National Energy Corridor will generate economic and social benefits for the entire country by moving oil, gas, hydroelectricity, telecommunications, and potentially accommodating other linear infrastructure. With a single corridor, industry wouldn’t need to submit complicated proposals for every new project.

A single coast-to-coast corridor would:

• minimize environmental impacts
• lower the costs of environmental assessments without sacrificing quality
• increase certainty for investors
• get critical projects built
• and create good-paying jobs.

A new Conservative government will appoint a blue-ribbon task force to provide recommendations within six months of its establishment on how to proceed. The government would then begin to work with the provinces and Indigenous peoples – who would both share in the prosperity this project would provide – to realize this vital coast-to-coast link.

“As Canadians, we need to start dreaming big again, and we need to start dreaming together,” said Scheer. “We need to start building a stronger, more united country worthy of those who came before us and that our children and grandchildren deserve.”

Today’s announcement is part of Andrew Scheer’s plan to create jobs for Canadians across the country and help you get ahead. 

• Scrap the Trudeau Carbon Tax, lowering the cost of everyday essentials like gas, groceries and home heating.
• Introduce the Universal Tax Cut, saving a couple earning average salaries $850.
• Take the GST off home heating costs, saving your family $107 every year.
• Introduce the Green Public Transit Tax Credit, saving a family of four who take transit up to $1,000.
• Make maternity benefits tax-free, putting up to $4,000 back in the pockets of new parents.
• Introduce the Children’s Fitness Tax Credit, allowing parents to claim up to $1,000 for sports activities.
• Introduce the Children’s Arts and Learning Tax Credit, letting parents claim up to $500 for arts and learning programs.
• Expand the Age Credit, benefiting the lowest income Canadians the most and giving a senior couple up to $300.
• Boost government-matching to RESPs by 50 per cent, helping parents get more for their kids’ education.
• Introduce the Green Home Renovation Tax Credit, putting up to $3,800 back in the pockets of Canadians for green home improvements.

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