Canadians go to the polls on 20th September

Party platforms

From Left: Erin O’Toole, Justin Trudeau, Annamie Paul, Yves-François Blanchet and Jagmeet Singh

CHILD CARE

Conservatives:

– Scrap all Liberal government child-care funding deals in favour of a refundable tax credit of between $4,560 and $6,000

Liberals:

– 50 per cent reduction in average fees for early learning and child care by end of next year

– Reduce child care fees to $10 per day on average within next five years – everywhere outside of Que.

– Invest up to $30 billion over the next five years – minimum of $9.2 billion per year – to make Canada-wide child care system “a reality”

NDP:

– Pledging $10-a-day universal child care

ENERGY AND ENVIRONMENT

Conservatives:

– Eliminate Bill C-69

– Repeal C-48

-Get Trans Mountain expansion built

– Promote “mutually beneficial conversations” between Indigenous communities and resource project proponents, providing $10 million per year to organizations involved

– Invest $1.5 billion to support N.L.’s offshore oil industry

– Introduce zero-emission vehicle mandate based on B.C.’s, requiring 30 per cent of light duty vehicles sold to be zero emissions by 2030

– Invest a billion dollars in building out electric vehicle manufacturing in Canada

Liberals:

– No specific proposals to date

 

NDP:

– Setting target of reducing emissions by at least 50 per cent from 2005 levels by 2030

– Set target of net carbon-free electricity by 2030, moving to 100 per cent non-emitting electricity by 2040

– Ensure prices at the pumps are fair by creating a watchdog to investigate gouging complaints

Greens:

– Will not support construction of new pipelines in Canada

– Opposed to any new oil and gas exploration projects

– Will not support any project relying on fracking gas

HOUSING

Conservatives:

– Aim to have one million homes built across the country in the next three years

– Ban foreign investors not living in or moving to Canada from buying homes for a two-year period, encourage foreign investment in affordable purpose-built rental housing

– Encourage new market in seven-to-10-year mortgages to “provide stability” for first-time homebuyers and lenders

– Will not tax Canadians’ capital gains on the sale of their principal residence

– Adjust mortgage stress test to “stop discriminating” against small business owners, contractors and other non-permanent employees, including casual workers

Liberals:

– No specific proposals to date

NDP:

– Introduce 30-year terms on mortgages insured by Canada Mortgage and Housing Corporation

– Pledging 500,000 “quality, affordable” housing units within 10 years

– 20 per cent tax on homes purchased by foreign buyers

-Waive federal portion of GST/HST on construction of new affordable rental units

– Double homebuyer’s tax credit to $1,500

JOBS AND ECONOMY

Conservatives:

Restore one million jobs lost due to the pandemic within a year

– Pay up to 50 per cent of new hires’ salaries for six months following the end of the Canada Emergency Wage Subsidy

– Launch Super EI that temporarily provides 75 per cent of salary instead of 55 per cent when a province goes into recession – EI will return to normal levels once recession is over, as evidenced by three months of job gains

– Reject mergers that substantially reduce competition and lead to layoffs and higher prices

– Invest $250 million over two years to provide grants to organizations including employers, apprenticeship training delivery agents, unions, post-secondary institutions, and community organizations

– Provide low interest loans of up to $10,000 to people who want to upgrade their skills

Liberals:

– Extend the Canada Recovery Hiring Program to March 31, 2022

– Provide the country’s tourism industry with temporary wage and rent support of up to 75 per cent of their expenses to help them get through the winter months

– Extend COVID-related insurance coverage for media production stoppages to support 150,000 jobs

NDP:

– Says more than one million jobs will be created in first mandate

– $20 minimum wage

– Sees enhancements to EI program, including making the program available to anyone who quits their job to go back to school, provide child care, or protect health of immunocompromised family members

– Vowing to “build towards” a guaranteed livable income for all Canadians

– Make CEOs who received federal subsidies intended for protecting workers’ jobs pay that money back

– Modernize Investment Canada Act to tighten review of takeovers by foreign entities

 – Require large employers to spend at least one per cent of payroll on training for their employees annually

PERSONAL FINANCE/TAXES

Conservatives:

– Implement month-long GST holiday this fall with all purchases made at retail stores being tax-free for the month

– Order Competition Bureau to investigate bank fees and require more transparency for investment management fees

Liberals:

– No specific proposals to date

NDP:

– Hike the capital gains tax inclusion rate to 75 per cent (from 50 per cent)

– One per cent tax on households with fortunes topping $10 million

– An income tax hike of two points to 35 per cent for the highest bracket – currently $216,511 and above

– Implement luxury goods tax on yachts and private jets

RETIREMENT AND SENIORS

Conservatives:

– Prevent executives from paying themselves bonuses while managing a company going through restructuring if pension plan is not fully funded

– Devote $3 billion of infrastructure funding over the next three years to renovate long-term care homes across the country

Liberals:

– No specific proposals to date

NDP

– Guaranteed livable income for seniors and Canadians with disabilities

SMALL BUSINESS

Conservatives:

– Provide a five per cent investment tax credit for any capital investment made in 2022 and 2023, with the first $25,000 to be refundable for small business

– Provide a 25 per cent tax credit on amounts of up to $100,000 that Canadians personally invest in a small business over the next two years

– Provide loans of up to $200,000 to help small and medium businesses in hospitality, retail and tourism, with up to 25 per cent forgiven

– Provide 50 per cent rebate for food and non-alcoholic drinks purchased for dine-in from Monday to Wednesday for one month once it’s safe to do so

– Launch 15 per cent tax credit for vacation expenses of up to $1,000 per person for Canadians to travel within the country in 2022

Liberals:

– No specific proposals to date

NDP:

– Vows to continue wage and rent subsidies until small businesses can fully reopen

– Implement hiring bonus to cover the employer’s portion of EI and CPP benefits for new and rehired staff

– Cap credit card merchant fees at one per cent

  TECHNOLOGY

Conservatives:

Cut income tax rate in half on new patented technologies developed in Canada

– Connect every Canadian with high-speed internet by 2025

– Require that Huawei equipment not be used to protect national security

– Allow foreign telecoms to operate in Canada so long as Canadian companies are granted reciprocal access

– Introduce use of flow-through shares for tech companies to avoid the cost and complexity of listing on an exchange

– Exempt Canadian-controlled start-ups headquartered and with at least 2/3 of their employees in Canada from the current plan to tax stock options

Liberals:

– No specific proposals to date

NDP:

– Price cap on cellphone and internet bills

– Expand cell coverage and deliver broadband internet to every Canadian community, declaring high-speed internet an essential service