How does Department of Finance Canada solve the biggest problem in the country?

Finance Minister Chrystia Freeland delivered the 2023 Fall Economic Report, outlining the key actions the government is taking to address key challenges. The Ministry has two main areas of focus: housing and support for the middle class.

Canada's Housing Action Plan

Combating the housing crisis is resource intensive and is being addressed on a number of fronts:

• CA$ 4 billion has been allocated to the Housing Accelerator Fund (HAF) and 100,000 houses will be built with this money;
• federal properties in Calgary, Edmonton, St. John's and Ottawa repurposed for more than 2,800 new homes;
• tax on rental housing has been repealed;
• CA$ 20 billion allocated for the construction of 30,000 rental housing units per year;
• launched the Apartment Construction Loan Program to assist developers;
• CA$ 1 billion is allocated separately for affordable housing for the most vulnerable social groups;
• work is underway to facilitate the mobility of construction professionals within Canada — and to attract them from abroad, with professionals in this field receiving first priority in immigration programs along with medical professionals;
• the active fight against short-term rentals is underway, and municipal control of short-term rental restrictions is being introduced;
• approved the new Canadian Mortgage Charter, ensuring that those at financial risk can access individualized mortgage benefits;
• summarized first results for the Tax-Free First Home Savings Account.

Supporting the middle class

The Liberal government of Justin Trudeau is focusing its economic strategy on strengthening the middle class. To this end, the following measures are being taken:

• the approach to competition in the market has been revised, and amendments to the Competition Law have been adopted to curb monopolization of certain industries and stimulate increased competition;
• steps are being taken to stabilize food prices — negotiations with grocery chains and passage of the Affordable Housing and Food Act;
• eliminated the psychotherapy services tax to make mental health care more affordable for Canadians;
• the fight against garbage fees continues, including the abolition of the one charged by banks (NSF);
• amended legislation regarding the repair of personal devices to prevent manufacturers from refusing to provide funds for repairs;
• a new Employment Insurance adoption benefit, providing new parents with 15 weeks of payments;
• encourages the proliferation of low-cost and free bank account options, and appoints a single independent ombudsman to help Canadians resolve complaints with their banks.

Many regional officials also supported the general course of the federal government. Thus, right after Freeland, the Minister responsible for the Federal Economic Development Agency for Southern Ontario, Philomena Tassi, spoke on the topic of priorities in the economy.

The official emphasized that her region leads Canada in the rate of housing construction, and agreed on critical measures: allocating billions of dollars to build more homes faster, cracking down on short-term rentals and creating jobs for builders.