The Role and Development of the Family

The party has released no official statement on its policies concerning the role of the family in society.

The party advocates:

– a reform of employment insurance so that women who lose their jobs towards the end or upon returning from their maternity and parental leave can be protected by benefits
– modifying the assistance program for first-time buyers to make it easier to buy an already-built house like a new one, in particular to avoid urban sprawl

Healthcare

The party states that health is the top priority of Quebeckers.

The party advocates:

– resuming the fight against fiscal imbalance, starting by demanding an increase in health transfers of 6% per year so that they reach a level equivalent to at least 25% of Quebec spending in this area
– demanding that the aging of the population be taken into account in the calculation of health transfers
– changing the process for setting drug prices by shifting from comparison of prices with the current set of seven countries, in among which the party believes have drug prices that are among the most expensive on the planet

Support for the Elderly

The party states that our seniors deserve to enjoy their well-deserved retirement in peace.

The party advocates:

– reforming old age pensions to protect household income, thereby ensuring that seniors’ purchasing power is maintained in the long term
– continued work to improve the Guaranteed Income Supplement
– continued work to make pension funds priority creditors in the event of a business failure such as bankruptcy
– to promote in-home care, particularly by family members, proposing that the tax credit for caregivers become a refundable tax credit
– revising the home care costs tax credit to eliminate the requirement for filing of receipts, as semi-autonomous seniors who live in residences often do not have these receipts, as the costs are included in the rent

Education & Young Workers

The party states that it will be an ally of young people during their studies and when buying a first home.

The party advocates:

– increasing the Canada Social Transfer to correct decades of federal underfunding in education; • modifying the assistance program for first-time buyers to make it easier to buy an already-built house like a new one, in particular to avoid urban sprawl
– calling for increased funding for university research

Culture, Arts & Tourism

The party states that Internet giants such as Google, Apple, Facebook, Amazon, Microsoft, Spotify, Netflix and others benefit from the work of Quebec creators and journalists, but pay no tax in Canada.

The party advocates:

– that Canada be inspired by France and impose the giants of the Web up to 3% of their activity on Canadian territory
– creation of a think tank bringing together the entire Francophonie on the promotion and protection of Francophone cultures on online platforms
– to end unfair competition and closure of print newspapers and other media outlets, imposing at the federal level GST on online advertising, regardless of the platform
– creation of a written media fund, from the revenue from taxes collected on advertising
– establishment of a general commission to study the future of print media with all the actors affected by the current written media crisis, the governments of Quebec and the provinces, and experts in order to find long-term solutions to ensure the survival of our press and of all broadcasters (general interest and specialized television and radio)
– transfer from the federal government to Quebec the regulation of all telecommunications and broadcasting within Quebec, so that the development of Quebecois communications corresponds to the province’s needs and ways of doing things
– to support online culture, a review by the provincial cultural community of the copyright rules of the Copyright Commission for access to online music in order to find ways to ensure fair remuneration for artists
– introduction of a bill causing the Canadian government to recognize the existence of a Quebec culture and promote it on platforms such as Apple Music, Spotify or Netflix in order to give more space to Quebecois creators in their algorithms
– in response to increasing film production costs, an increase for Telefilm Canada’s budget to support enhancement of Quebec cultural productions, and authority for the Conseil des arts to have the means to better support Quebec creators
– an increase in Telefilm Canada’s budget to $300 million per year, to allow the creation of heavy online series comparable to what is done in many countries, and advocates
– exemption of book purchases from federal GST, to match Quebec provincial practice, and reduced postal rates for book delivery through Canada Post, as is currently provided for periodicals
– support for any initiative aimed at creating Quebec national sports teams, so that Quebec and its athletes participate in international sports competitions under the colors of Quebec
– to protect the rights of Acadians and francophones outside Quebec, supporting the creation of a French-speaking university in Ontario

Role and development of the family

The party states that:

– parents are the best and primary caregivers for their own children, and that taxpayer-funded childcare is no substitute
– marriage means exclusively the union of one man and one woman, and is the most basic of human relationships and the foundational building block of society
– the marriage commitment between a husband and a wife provides the most stable environment for the raising of children
– children do best in homes having both a mother and a father
– public education should not include harmful ideologies such as gender fluidity, links between CO2 and climate change, economic socialism, etc.

The party advocates:

– restoring the legal definition of marriage as between one man and one woman and rescinding government support for “same-sex marriage”
– focusing public education on essential career skills such as math, science, literature and history
– strengthening the family unit, reducing divorce and the necessity of one couple maintaining two homes
– restraining state interference in family matters except in cases of obvious and provable child abuse
– restraint of state interference in religious, medical, and moral issues, which are matters of parental jurisdiction
– making stay-at-home parenting more affordable

Healthcare

The party states that:

– Canada’s healthcare system is good but can be improved
– more emphasis should be placed on preventive care and alternative medicine
– Big Pharma must not maintain its monopoly on treatment protocols and access to drugs

The party advocates:

– shortening waiting lists for urgent treatments by credentialing more qualified doctors and defunding elective procedures such as abortion, euthanasia, and “gender reassignment” surgery
– improving design of new hospitals to incorporate modern design features to limit the spread of infectious disease

Support for the Elderly

The party states that the Canada Pension Plan is inadequate for meeting the needs of Canada’s seniors, even when combined with the Old Age pension.

The party advocates introduction of a new Personal Income Security Account, in addition to OAS, to give Canadians control over their own employment pension funds, with contributions to be made by both the employer and employee to each employee’s individual account as is now done for the CPP.

Education & Young Workers

The party acknowledges  that public education is a provincial responsibility, but calls for federal protection of children from harmful ideologies such as gender fluidity, links between CO2 and climate change, economic socialism, etc.

The party advocates:

– focusing public education on essential career skills such as math, science, literature and history
– parental rights to know what children are being taught in school
– restraining state teaching of things that are contrary to the beliefs of their parents

Culture, Arts & Tourism

The party has released no official statement concerning its policies on culture, arts, or tourism.

Role and development of the family

The party believes that the family unit is essential to the well-being of individuals and society, because that is where a child learns values and develops a sense of responsibility.

The party confirms:

– the right and duty of parents to raise their own children responsibly according to their own conscience and beliefs
– that no person, government or agency has the right to interfere with the duty of parents to raise children except through due process of law
– the need to address declining Canadian birth rates by reducing barriers to growth of families

The party advocates:

– in case of marital breakdown, the Divorce Act should grant joint custody and/or shared parenting, unless clearly not in the best interests of the child
– all parents and grandparents should be allowed to maintain relationships with children unless not in the best interests of the child
– providing a tax credit to ensure that EI maternity and parental benefits, and Quebec Parental Insurance benefits, are tax-free
– a universal child care tax benefit which provides an equal level of assistance regardless of residence, work schedule, or choice of child care format
– to encourage adoptions, a 15-week EI adoption leave modeled on maternity leave, and increasing the Adoption Expense Tax Credit to $20,000
– a $1000 Children’s Fitness Tax Credit, to help cover expenses for children’s sports and fitness programs
– a $500 Children’s Arts & Learning Tax Credit
– increasing penalties for sexual crimes against children
– to support parents grieving loss of a child, extend EI parental leave to eight weeks following loss of an infant

Healthcare

The party states that:

– all Canadians should have reasonable access to timely, quality health care services, regardless of ability to pay
– provinces and territories should be able to include balanced public and private health care options
– the party promotes wellness and disease-prevention programs as a part of health care
– the 20-year patent term achieves a workable balance between encouraging development of new drugs and assuring they are available at affordable prices

The party advocates:

– government support for research that reduces waiting times for care, improves the quality of care, and ensures better sharing of information in the delivery of health care services
– investing $1.5 billion in MRI and CT scanners, to reduce imaging wait times
– to guarantee quality health and social programs, maintain and increase funding to the Canada Health and Social Transfers according to current formulas
– working closely with provinces, territories and others to implement a strategy to encourage more orphan drugs to be developed and brought to Canada, to improve early detection of and care for rare diseases, and promote research
– developing a national autism strategy, starting with a $50 million investment over 5 years
– requiring tobacco companies to pay for anti-tobacco campaigns

Support for the Elderly

The party advocates:

– opposition to mandatory retirement at 65
– to put more money in the pockets of seniors, expanding the Age Credit by $1000
– mandating that all federally-regulated companies report on the solvency of their pension funds
– in order to improve fund solvency, allow underfunded pension funds to be transferred to other plans
– restriction of bonuses for executives of companies in bankruptcy
– enabling seniors to remain in home, with appropriate care, through tax incentives for care-givers who look after the elderly or disabled in the home
– tough measures to deter elder abuse
– working with provinces to identify seniors who qualify for but have not received benefits, and retroactive entitlement

Education & Young Workers

The party states that it believes in greater accessibility to education by eliminating as many barriers to post-secondary education as possible.

The party advocates:

– educational transfer payments to provinces based on numbers of enrolled students
– increasing the government’s contribution for the Registered Education Savings Plan (RESP) from 20 to 30 percent, up to $2500 per year
– providing tax incentives and relief for student loans

Culture, Arts & Tourism

The party believes that:

– our culture is what binds Canadians together; that our shared identity stems from the stories we tell through music, television, art, and other media
– cultural industries are a huge economic driver, creating over 765,000 jobs in our economy
– Canada’s multicultural society is a valued reality, while all Canadians should adopt common Canadian values such as equality, democracy, and the rule of law

The party advocates:

– to ensure that government programs support the culture sector, working in a consultative way with the arts, music, film, and other industries to understand how the government can adapt, including programs for talented but struggling artists in a digitized economy
– maintaining light stations, their personnel and aids to navigation as important contributions to Canadian sovereignty and culture, and for public safety, including particularly kayakers and recreational boaters
– to encourage Canadians to celebrate our shared heritage, removing admissions fees from national museums
– designating the RCMP Heritage Centre in Saskatchewan as a national museum
– extending the Communities through Arts and Heritage Program for three years, to celebrate local talent and community histories
– prioritizing the commemoration of nation builders, from Thayendanegea, Brock, Secord, McDonald, Cartier, and Riel
– designating the gravesites of former Prime Ministers and Governors General as national historic sites
– supporting and increasing participation in local and top-tier international sporting events.

  Official languages

The party advocates:

– promoting official bilingualism by partnering with official language minority communities and groups
– requiring all federal departments to establish plans and targets to improve their services in both official languages & requiring continual five-year action plans for official languages
– establishing an Official Languages tribunal to resolve violations of official language rights
– support establishment of a francophone university in Toronto by honoring the understanding signed by the Ontario and federal governments and looking at federal real estate in Toronto for use by the university

CBC & Film

The party advocates:

– emphasizing the role of CBC as public broadcaster
– balanced content
– disciplined budgets
– strengthening of the film production industry, to make it thriving and self-sustaining

Role and development of the family

The party is committed to nurturing families and communities through integrated policies that focus on the welfare of the child, starting with prenatal nutrition all the way to affordable housing and accessible post-secondary education.

It believes Canada must stop designing communities around the car and start designing them around families and children.

Early Learning & Childcare

The party believes that early learning and child care are fundamental to meeting broader equity and social justice goals, for fighting poverty, and for establishing a green economy.

The party advocates:

– as a key to establishing equality in the workplace for women, providing universal child care
– collaborating with provinces/territories, local communities, Indigenous communities and the child-care sector to ensure that a comprehensive short-, medium- and long-term plan for child care is available, based on the principles of universality, affordability, quality, inclusivity and equity
– dedicating additional resources to make universal, affordable, early learning and child-care (ELCC) a reality.

Healthcare

The party notes that although the provinces have jurisdiction over health care delivery, the Canada Health Act sets the terms by which this happens. It provides universal primary health care to all Canadians, and ensures that this care is comparable across the country.

The party advocates:

– in accordance with the principles of the Canada Health Act, extending care to further aspects of health care
– addressing challenges faced by defined populations like First Nations people on reserve and Inuit, members of the Canadian Forces, veterans, incarcerated persons and certain refugee claimants
– implementing recommendations of the Parliamentary Committee on Health to include prescription drugs
– to address health issue arising from climate change, restoring the federal/provincial Health Accord, basing health transfers on demographics and real health care needs in each province, replacing the current formula based on GDP growth
– implementing free pharmacare and dental care for all Canadians
– improving health care for Indigenous People by implementing recommendations 18-24 of the Truth & Reconciliation Commission
– enabling Indigenous organizations to rebuild traditional knowledge systems for healing and wellness

Support for the Elderly

The party notes that seniors make up a growing proportion of Canada’s total population, and believes that it is an essential term of the social contract between government and citizens is to make sure people can live fulfilling and dignified lives in their senior years

The party advocates:

• to help seniors lead fulfilling and dignified lives, commitments to a Guaranteed Livable Income, Pharmacare, public transportation, home retrofits and affordable housing
• increasing the target rate of the Canada Pension Plan’s income replacement rate from 25 to 50 percent of income received during working years.
• requiring disinvestment by the CPP investment board from coal, oil, and gas share, and investment in ethical and sustainable enterprises
• promoting home-sharing plans to allow seniors to stay in their homes longer
• protecting private pensions by giving pensions priority in bankruptcy proceedings
• developing and funding a national dementia strategy
• amending the Medical Assistance in Dying (MAD) legislation to ensure that everyone has the choice of dying with dignity, including allowing advance directives and guaranteeing the right to draw up a “living will” that gives individuals the power to limit or refuse medical intervention and treatment

 Education & Young Workers

The party advocates:

• to facilitate the shift to new jobs, leveraging public procurement to maximize opportunities for social hiring and procurement, including Indigenous, youth, and demand-driven skills development programs
• enhancing the federal Youth Employment and Skills Strategy by creating a Community and Environment Service Corps, by providing $1 billion annually to municipalities to hire Canadian youth
• eliminating post-secondary education tuition to help workers train for new employment
• federal investment of $10 billion in post-secondary and trade-school supports, to combat rising tuition costs and declining quality of education
• making university and college tuition free for all Canadians, by redirecting current bursaries, tax credits, and administration costs for student loans and defaults
• tying federal-provincial transfers to universities, using metrics indicating access of students to professors, mentorship, inclusion, and tenure-track hiring

Culture, Arts & Tourism

The party states that a vibrant, diverse media sector is a prerequisite for a healthy democracy, and that corporate ownership is stifling creativity.

The party advocates:

• Increasing funding to all of Canada’s arts and culture organizations
• Reviewing tax incentives for film production to ensure all parts of Canada are competitive and attractive to the industry, with incentives for employing Canadian artistic and technical talent
• a federal income tax credit for private involvement in preserving Canada’s heritage
• reforming anti-trust laws to break up media conglomerates
• closing loopholes that exempt social media platforms from collecting taxes on advertising
• increasing funding to CBC and Radio Canada by $315 million per year
• reforming the governance structure of CBC/Radio Canada to remove the potential for political interference in board appointments

  Official languages

The party advocates:

• in the first year of the next parliament, promoting and implementing a modernized Official Languages Act to protect both national languages.
• ensuring funding for the protection of Indigenous languages at risk of disappearing, across Canada.

Role and development of the family

The party states that:

– increased maternal workforce participation is good for economic growth and increases domestic product per capita, as well as individual family income
– accessible and affordable child care helps create jobs and spurs economic growth

The party advocates:

– $10 a day child care to make life affordable for families
– laying the foundation for a Canada-wide early learning and childcare system, in order to correct economic losses to women caused by the COVID recession
– allocating $625 million to ensure that a safe and sufficient level of child care is available to support the gradual return to work of parents
– allocating a further $20 million to establish a Federal Secretariat on Early Learning and Child Care
– allocating a further $70 million to sustain the existing federal Indigenous Early Learning and Child Care Secretariat, to support Indigenous participation in development of a Canada-wide child care system
– providing a further $870 million per year for enhance fee subsidies for child care
– providing a further $420 billion in one year to train early childhood educators
– investing a further $75 million to improve quality of Indigenous child care programs through delivery of quality, culturally-relevant care
– providing $1200 per year for each child under the age of six for families with incomes under $120000 per year families receiving Canada Child Benefits an additional $300 per child

Healthcare

COVID Recovery

The party advocates:

– mandatory vaccines on planes, trains, and in the federal public service
– support for proof-of-vaccination credentials
– safer indoor spaces, like schools and businesses, with better ventilation
– free vaccine boosters, for everyone

The party reports that:

– of the $322 billion spent by the federal government to fight the pandemic by December 2020, $59 billion was used to support critical health care systems, purchase personal protective equipment, and support critical research and vaccine development
– as of December 2020, it has secured the largest number and greatest variety of vaccine doses, per capita, of any country

Of the $322 billion spent by December 2020:

– $284.2 million was spent to improve capacity for shipping, storing, and distributing vaccines
– $4.3 billion was spent for testing and contact tracing
– $1.2 billion was spent for helping provinces and territories prepare health care system & supporting those with mental health and addition challenges
– $4.5 billion was spent for personal protection equipment for the federal government
– $3 billion was spent to provide income for workers unable to work due to COVID -19
– $2 billion was spent to support municipalities
– $4.5 billion was made available for optional fund-matching for critical transit support
– it required all incoming international travellers to quarantine upon arrival, and provided $322 million in 2020-21 to provide quarantine facilities at Canada’s four largest airports
– it provided a further $100 million in 2020-21 to support safe voluntary isolation in municipalities across Canada, for those who cannot safely isolate at home

Health Care

The party advocates:

– support to hire 7,500 doctors and nurses
– better long-term care
– working to hire 50,000 personal support workers (PSWs) and raising their wages to $25 an hour
– publicly accessible mental health care
– action to address the opioid crisis and make it easier for people with problematic substance use to access treatment
– 10 days of paid sick leave for federally regulated workers
– protecting your sexual and reproductive health and rights.

Pharmacare

The party advocates:

– investing at least $170 million in governmental capacity to manufacture vaccines, by establishing a new bio-manufacturing facility at the National Research Council Therapeutics Centre in Montreal
– investing up to $792 million in private bio-manufacturing capacity through the Strategic Innovation Fund
– exploring ways to promote long-term sustainable growth in the bio-manufacturing sector, through the National Research Council and Strategic Innovation fund
– establishing new Canadian Drug Agency to negotiate drug prices on behalf of all Canadians
– developing a national strategy for high-cost drugs for rare diseases, with funding of $500 million per year, beginning in 2022-23

Support for the Elderly

The party reports that:

– from April to July 2020 it deployed members of the Canadian Armed Forces to support 54 long-term care facilities affected by the pandemic in Ontario and Quebec
– has committed to providing more than $50 million for support of long-term care facilities, including pay raises for home workers and training for additional workers
– it provided Old Age Security top-ups of $300 to seniors, as support during the pandemic
– it provided top-ups of $200 to recipients of Old Age Security payments, to defray costs of staying home and staying safe

The party advocates:

– working with provinces and territories to establish national long-term care standards, including improved conditions for support workers and improve retention

Students & Young Workers

The party reports that:

– under its leadership the federal government has provided as much as $2 billion to provinces and territories to support a safe return to class and to protect students and staff
– younger workers were the hardest-hit age group as a result of the pandemic, with a drop to historic lows in youth employment
– to support post-secondary students who were unable to obtain summer employment during the summer of 2020, the government provided $2.94 billion in income support
– in addition, the government provided $228 million to graduate and post-doctoral students to support extended research scholarships

The party advocates:

– to prevent the pandemic from derailing future opportunities for young workers, doubling student summer grant programs and providing funding for new opportunities
– increasing federal summer jobs placements by 40,000 to 120,000 by providing $447.5 million in new investments for 2020-21
– investing an additional $575 million over two years in youth employment and skills training, to providing approximately 45,300 job placements
– eliminating $329.4 million in federal interest on student and apprentice loans for 2021-22

Culture, Arts & Tourism

The party reports that:

– for some businesses, such as tourism and hospitality businesses affected by the pandemic, it is working with private lenders to offer loans on reduced terms
– it has allocated $181.5 million in 2021-2033 to the Department of Canadian Heritage and the Canada Council for the Arts, for their funding programs
– to support local radio and television broadcasters, it advocates waiving of $50 million in 2020-21 licensing fees

Role and development of the family

The party hopes to build a future where families feel more secure and more hopeful in their lives.

The party advocates:

– legislation to allow 30-year mortgages to reduce monthly payments and allow more families to buy homes
– doubling the home-buyer’s tax credit to $1500

Child Care

The party believes that every parent should be able to access quality child care when needed, with a licensed provider who earns a fair wage.

The patty advocates:

– working with other levels of government, Indigenous communities, families, and child care workers to ensure that care is inclusive and responsive to the needs of all Canada’s children
– investing $1 billion dollars in the first year, and more than that annually, along with provinces and territories

Healthcare

The party states that:

– in many parts of Canada services vital to the safety and health of families are under threat due to funding cutes and privatization
– millions of families cannot afford to take the medications they need because they have no employer-provided drug coverage, and that the number of such cases is growing.
– Canadians pay the third-highest prices for prescription drugs in the world.

The party advocates:

– investing $10 billion per year to include quality prescription drug coverage for everyone as a part of universal public health care
– fighting for public healthcare and standing up to privatization that costs Canadians money and undermines the public healthcare system

Support for the Elderly

The party states that:

– every senior must have access to the care they need, and support for remaining in their own homes
– family caregivers deserve more support for their loved ones
– there are differing levels of care across the provinces and territories
-ongoing staffing shortages reduce the quality of care and expose care workers to workplace violence

The party advocates:

– establishing a national seniors strategy to work with local and provincial governments to prioritize seniors health care, reduce isolation, and address poverty in seniors
– including in the national seniors strategy a funded national dementia strategy and an abuse prevention plan
– ensuring that additional units of accessible and affordable housing are created, and supporting innovative housing solutions including inter-generational co-housing
– national standards for home care and long-term care, incorporated in the Canada Health Act
-as a part of a national home care and long-term care standards, a legally-protected right to access a consistent quality of care, including a “basket” of home care services to be covered by provincial insurance plans

Education & Young Workers

The party believes that:

– education is the greatest gift we can give our children, and can create many opportunities; and that access to it should depend academic ability and drive, and not on how much money one has
– that sky-rocketing tuition is denying too many people access to post-secondary education
– the rampant use of unpaid internships exposes young workers to abuse

The party advocates:

– working with provinces and territories to cap and reduce tuition fees
– making post-secondary education a part of the public education system, so that kids can go from kindergarten to a career without the barrier of cost
– moving away from loans and significantly increasing non-repayable Canada student grants
– immediately banning unpaid internships outside of education programs

Culture, Arts & Tourism

The party believes that arts and culture are at the heart of the Canadian identity, and importance in our understanding of one another.

The party reports that the film and television industry employs almost 180,000 people and provides $9 billion to the Canadian economy.

The party advocates:

– taxing internet media companies, in order to provide a level playing field for Canadian content providers
– supporting use of Canadian content and both official languages on the internet
– increased funding for CBC and Radio-Canada
– stable, long-term funding for arts and cultural institutions, to grow and promote Canada’s diverse cultures and histories
– support for Canadian media to assist them in making the digital transition
– financial support for Indigenous theatre at the National Arts Centre
– implementing income averaging in taxation of artists and cultural workers
– enhancing the Action Plan for Official Languages to improve access to services in the language of choice
– working with provinces to improve minority language education and to attract more French-speaking immigrants to communities across the country
– modernizing the Official Languages Act to strengthen oversight and accountability, expand the scope of language rights, and ensure that minority language communities are consulted regarding decisions that impact them

The party has published no stated positions on:

– The Role of the Family
– Education & Young Workers

Health Care

COVID pandemic

The party notes that:

– Section 1 of Canada’s Charter of Rights and Freedoms states that reasonable limits to our rights and freedoms can only be imposed f it has been demonstrated that they are justified in a free and democratic society
– no such demonstration has not been made for COVID restrictions, most of which are arguably unconstitutional
– no such demonstration has been made for COVID restrictions, including mask and vaccination requirements, most of which are arguably unconstitutional
– although most of the measures in response to the COVID pandemic have been implemented by provincial governments, Ottawa has an important coordinating role to play at the national level and can influence provincial policies.  Ottawa encouraged and supported lockdown policies through the transfer of tens of billions of dollars in financial aid to provinces and territories

The party advocates:

– promoting a rational and scientifically based approach to the pandemic that focuses on the protection of the most vulnerable, guarantees the freedom of Canadians to make decisions based on informed consent, and rejects coercion and discrimination
– replacement of Chief Public Health Officer of Canada Theresa Tam  with someone who will work with provincial agencies to implement a rational approach to the pandemic, instead of following the recommendations of the World Health Organization
– repealing vaccine mandates and regular testing for federal civil servants and workers in federally regulated industries
– repealing vaccine passports for travellers
– oppose vaccine mandates, vaccine passports, and other authoritarian measures imposed by provincial governments, and supporting individuals and groups that challenge such measures in court
– supporting emergency provincial measures to protect the most vulnerable, but stopping bail-out of provinces that impose economically destructive lockdowns
– supporting medical research and development of therapies to treat COVID-19 and other viral diseases

General Health Care

The party states that:

– Canada’s public health care system has the worst wait times of any developed country
– Health care costs have been increasing at an unsustainable rate, increasing financial pressures on the budgets of provincial governments
– the situation is likely to get worse with Canada’s aging population
– as seen during the COVID pandemic, the Canadian health care system is too rigid and bureaucratized to quickly adapt to a crisis situation
– although health care is an exclusive provincial jurisdiction, the federal government has insisted that the provinces satisfy a series of conditions set in the Canada Health Act in exchange for transfer payments, which are not tied to health care expenses but simply added to the provinces’ general funds
– these conditions discourage innovation and cause bickering between the federal and provincial governments
– federal health care transfers to the provinces have more than doubled since 2006, from $20 billion to $43 billion in 2021-22
– Canada is the only developed country where the government has a monopoly on medically required care. All other OECD countries have mixed private-public systems and (with the exception of the United States) universal systems that guarantee citizens equal access totreatment
– wait times are shorter in mixed-care systems, and nobody is denied care because of low income

The party advocates:

– replacing the Canada Health Transfer cash payments with a permanent transfer of tax points of equivalent value to the provinces and territories, to give them a stable source of revenue
– establishing a temporary program to compensate poorer provinces whose revenues from the tax will be lower than the transfer payments they used to receive
– creating conditions for provincial and territorial governments to innovate, and making them fully responsible for health care funding and management

Culture, Arts, & Tourism

The party states that:

– a nation must be based on a sense of belonging, of participating in a common national project, and sharing the same values, and that only when such sentiments are widely shared can the trust and common understanding necessary for a society and institutions to function
– a type of multiculturalism encouraged in the past, in which immigrants who came to Canada were gradually integrated into society, keeping some aspects of the culture of their country of origin – becoming Canadian, but with a distinct flavour. This type of multiculturalism enriches our society
– the current stated policy of official multiculturalism encourages immigrants to keep the values and culture they left behind instead of integrating into Canadian society and adopting Canadian values and culture
– the current prime minister has described Canada as the first post-national state, with no core identity
– in a free society, immigrants have the right to cherish and maintain their cultural heritage; however, that does not impose an obligation on the new country to help them preserve it, with government programs and taxpayers’ money
– with two official languages, a multiethnic population including many Indigenous peoples and very different regional cultures, Canada is already diverse
– distinct Canadian values are those of a contemporary Western civilization, including democracy; individual rights and freedoms, including freedom of religious belief and freedom to criticize religion; equality between men and women; the equal treatment of all citizens regardless of ethnicity, religion, or sexual orientation; the rule of law; separation of state and religion; tolerance and pluralism; and loyalty to the wider society instead of to one’s clan or tribe

The party advocates:

– in order to keep our country united and ensure social cohesion, focusing on what unites us as Canadians, not what divides us
– repealing the Multiculturalism Act and eliminating all funding to promote multiculturalism, emphasizing instead the integration of immigrants into Canadian society
– substantially lowering the total number of immigrants and refugees Canada accepts every year, from 350,000 to between 100,000and 150,000 (see Immigration policy)
– ensuring that every candidate for immigration undergoes a face-to-face interview and answers a series of specific questions to assess the extent to which they align with Canadian values and societal norms (see Immigration policy)