In a news release this week, Marc Serré, the incumbent Liberal candidate for Nickel Belt, highlighted the party’s programs aimed at supporting Canadian families.
“The last thing parents should worry about is making ends meet,” said Serré. “Our government ensured parents have more in their pockets when they need it most and we’ve seen firsthand the positive impact it has had on local families.”
The Nickel Belt candidate pointed in particular to the Canada Child Benefit, introduced in 2016 as a tax-free monthly benefit. The Liberals promise to boost that benefit for families with children under one year, as well as making maternity and parental benefits tax free.
Read the full text of the release below:
There is nothing more important to parents than spending time with their kids. The reality however is that raising a family isn’t cheap. That’s why the Canada Child Benefit was introduced in 2016. It is a tax-free benefit that helps offset the cost of things like healthy food, sports programs, music lessons and more to give children the best possible start in life.
Currently the benefit helps nearly 17,000 children in Nickel Belt- Greater Sudbury.
“The last thing parents should worry about is making ends meet,” said Marc Serré, federal Liberal candidate for Nickel Belt.
“Our government ensured parents have more in their pockets when they need it most and we’ve seen firsthand the positive impact it has had on local families. This past July recipients received an increase which boosted the monthly average payment to $507, a win for Nickel Belt – Greater Sudbury families.
“That makes a tremendous difference, especially in rural areas like ours. I’m committed to working with families to address other areas of priority for them.”
The Liberal party’s 2019 platform dedicates even more support for families by:
- Giving up to $1,000 more to families to help when the costs of raising kids are highest, by boosting the Canada Child Benefit (CCB) by 15 per cent for children under the age of one;
- Making sure families get more money right away, by making maternity and parental benefits tax-free; and,
- Making paid leave fairer for families, by introducing a 15-week leave for adoptive parents – so they get as much in benefits to care for their kids as everyone else.
These important steps will build toward a long-term vision that helps families when it matters most.
The Liberal party will also establish a Guaranteed Paid Family leave – an ambitious program that will make sure that parents who don’t qualify for paid leave through Employment Insurance or don’t get enough, because they’re between jobs, earn little, or haven’t worked enough hours, will receive a guaranteed income during the first year of their child’s life. This means Nickel Belt- Greater Sudbury parents will be able to afford to spend the first year at home with their children.
Since 2015, the government has made it a priority to make life easier and more affordable for families:
- Giving more money to nine out of ten families and helped lift 300,000 children from poverty, by creating the CCB;
- Creating tens of thousands of new child care spaces across the country, by developing the Early Learning and Child Care framework;
- Making parental leave more flexible, by allowing parents to spread their time over 18 months; and
- Giving both parents the option to take more time off with their newborn, by adding the five-week parental sharing benefit.
