FINA Committee Report

In announcing the 2007 pre-budget consultations in June 2007, the House of Commons Standing Committee on Finance indicated that the focus would be the tax system Canada needs for a prosperous future. This focus was extended in November 2007, when it was announced that issues related to the impacts of the appreciation in the relative value of the Canadian dollar would also be considered.

In June, the Committee indicated that deadlines in respect of an intention to appear before the Committee and submission of a written brief would be respected. Since we decided to focus on personal and corporate taxes, fees and other charges, and subsequently on the impacts of the appreciation in the relative value of the Canadian dollar, witnesses were invited to make oral presentations to us largely on the basis of the extent to which their submitted brief addressed the main focus of taxation.

Consistent with the Committee’s June 2007 indication that timely submissions unrelated to the identified theme would be included in our report, this appendix contains the requests made by witnesses on issues other than the two main themes identified by us for our 2007 pre-budget consultations.

RECOMMENDATIONS BY THE COMMITTEE

From the perspective articulated above, and recognizing that only select witnesses made oral presentations on issues unrelated to the impacts of the rise in the relative value of the Canadian dollar or to the system of personal and corporate taxes, fees and other charges that the country needs for a prosperous future, the Committee recommends that:

GENERAL

1.            the federal government encourage provinces/territories to remove internal barriers to trade. In so doing, priority should be given to reaching agreement about a common securities regulator.

PEOPLE

2.            the federal government continue to provide need- and merit-based support to students enrolled in post-secondary institutions.

3.            the federal government create a specialized fund for medical research for children’s health. In this regard, priority should be given to the establishment of a partnership with the Juvenile Diabetes Research Foundation Canada.

4.            the federal government continue to support students enrolled in post-secondary education at a level commensurate with the funding allocated to the Canada Millennium Scholarship Foundation.

5.            the federal government increase the income support available to older workers in the manufacturing sector who face employment disruption.

6.            the federal government develop and implement a policy to combat poverty. This policy should include:

·        full retroactivity of Guaranteed Income Supplement benefits for those who have not received the benefits to which they are entitled;

·        the payment of full Guaranteed Income Supplement benefits to the surviving spouse or common-law partner for six months following the death of the recipient; and

·        an income support program for older workers.

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BUSINESS

7.            the federal government create loan and loan guarantee programs for employers in the manufacturing and forestry sectors, as well as for other industrial investments.

8.            the federal government allocate $1 billion to the forestry sector.

9.            the federal government allocate $1.5 billion for reimbursable contributions for businesses wishing to modernize their equipment.

10.       the federal government amend the Copyright Act in order to improve and modernize the legislation.

11.       the federal government develop and implement a program designed to ensure the removal of E. coli from the Canadian food chain.

12.       the federal government develop and implement a program to encourage the provinces having a sales tax to adopt a value-added tax system. This program should be available to those provinces that desire harmonization.

COMMUNITIES

13.       the federal government encourage the Canada Mortgage and Housing Corporation to use its retained earnings to leverage private-sector development in an effort to increase the stock of affordable housing. Any legislative or other changes needed by the Corporation to attain this objective should be provided.

14.       the federal government allocate $30 million annually for five years to finance the Canadian Olympic Committee’s Road to Excellence Program.

15.       the federal government apply the principles of the Leadership in Engineering and Environmental Design (LEED) Green Building program to federal public buildings.

16.       the federal government establish a timetable in order to reach an allocation of 0.7% of Canada’s Gross National Product to assist developing countries.

17.       the federal government develop and implement a cap-and-trade system in respect of carbon emissions.

18.       the federal government increase support for broadband deployment in rural and remote regions of Canada.

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REQUESTS BY THE WITNESSES

The ABC Canada Literacy Foundation requests that the federal government:

·        adopt a national plan to address Canada’s literacy gaps, with a national strategy that would set national goals and targets, standardize results and work co-operatively with the provinces/territories to ensure that Canadians reach the national goals; and

·        create a national strategy to support the efforts of business and labour to provide literacy upgrading, including the use of tax incentives, infrastructure development and supportive policies.

Accor Services requests that the federal government:

·        encourage the provinces/territories to adopt compatible regulations in respect of the employer-provided transit benefit proposal; and

·        provide resources to monitor and analyze the effectiveness of the employer-provided transit benefit proposal in terms of revenue and ridership increases, environmental benefits and other impacts.

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The Affordable Energy Coalition requests that the federal government:

·        immediately establish a stable, dedicated funding program, such as the One Percent Solution, for the Canadian housing program, with federal funding of $2 billion annually, restoration and renewal of federal and provincial/territorial programs, and extension of the federal homelessness strategy with immediate funding for new and expanded shelter services;

·        reinstate and enhance the Energy Cost Benefit Plan, with a focus on direct program delivery, no cost to participants, education and outreach, availability for renters, comprehensive conservation measures and community partnerships;

·        reinstate and enhance the EnerGuide For Low-Income Households program, with a focus on rate assistance, a back-up qualifying mechanism, comprehensive coverage of people and no clawbacks by the provinces/territories; and

·        establish a federally funded and administered National Housing Strategy, with a focus on awareness and recognition, political leadership, incremental improvements to build momentum and revitalization of the not-for-profit sector.

The Air Transport Association of Canada requests that the federal government:

·        pursue an integrated policy framework for commercial aviation;

·        ensure that Canada benchmarks and addresses tax policy competitiveness in all trade negotiations;

·        ensure that other governmental policy and regulatory initiatives do not undermine the strategic taxation policy measures;

·        examine federal regulatory and policy initiatives through the international competitiveness perspective; and

·        conduct an economic competitiveness impact audit of all proposed federal  regulations or policies as part of their development process.

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The Alberta Bone and Joint Health Institute requests that the federal government:

·        create new health care approaches based on the best evidence available worldwide, benchmarked against international leaders and standardized to ensure consistent and equitable service for all patients; and

·        introduce innovative mechanisms to create a competitive environment in public health care and to instill accountability across all parties, including patients, health care providers, administrators and policymakers.

The Alliance for Equality of Blind Canadians requests that the federal government:

·        lead the effort to forge a new, comprehensive national economic strategy to alleviate the poverty and unemployment of Canadians who are blind, deaf-blind and partially sighted;

·        with the provincial/territorial governments, demonstrate a new level of urgency and leadership in respect of alleviating the economic plight and unemployment of persons with disabilities, with a view to achieving employment and income rates among persons who are blind and otherwise disabled that are roughly equivalent to those of non-disabled Canadians;

·        make the federal public service a model employer, with a focus on recruitment, retention, promotion and workplace accommodations;

·        invest in the development of new assistive technology;

·        ensure that all purchases of information and communications technology are usable by all employees;

·        make available, through the Employment Insurance program, employment readiness programs that are targeted for persons with disabilities;

·        encourage work experience programs for persons with limited exposure to the labour market or with lower levels of education;

·        work with the provinces/territories to reduce significantly the economic disincentives in existing social assistance programs, with significant increases in earnings ceilings, the maintenance of disability supports and benefits after a return to work, and rapid reinstatement to income security programs if paid employment ceases; and

·        assist the provinces/territories in establishing a program of lifelong disability supports.

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The Alliance to End Homelessness requests that the federal government:

·        establish a national housing program through a new federal department of housing to increase, directly and significantly, affordable housing as well as supportive and supported housing;

·        establish a minimum five-year funding term for the Homelessness Partnering Strategy, with an evaluation as part of the fifth year;

·        invest in training;

·        re-establish the federal minimum wage and set it at an hourly rate of $10; and

·        increase Old Age Security and Guaranteed Income Supplement benefit levels.

The Alma Mater Society of the University of British Columbia requests that the federal government:

·        index, to the Higher Education Price Index, the amount of student debt relief and access-based grants;

·        review the system of federal financial aid for students;

·        review the Canada Student Loans Program, with particular emphasis on how students are able to access the program;

·        re-endow the Canada Millennium Scholarship Foundation with $4 billion in order to provide a sustainable and independent source of financial aid for the coming decade;

·        improve the national system of student financial aid, including making the Canada Student Loans Program fairer and easier to understand, and extending the Canada Access Grant to cover all years of an undergraduate education;

·        continue to use the Canada Millennium Scholarship Foundation, or some successor organization, to mitigate student debt; and

·        create a dedicated post-secondary education transfer.

The Arts Network for Children & Youth requests that the federal government:

·        establish a creative spaces children and youth infrastructure fund, with an initial investment of $50 million to be used for pilot infrastructure projects in urban, rural and remote communities for children and youth, and an ongoing annual commitment thereafter; and

·        establish a children and youth arts engagement fund, with an initial minimum investment of $15 million and an ongoing annual commitment thereafter, to support the annual core operating costs of community organizations.

The Assembly of First Nations requests that the federal government:

·        immediately remove the 2% funding cap on core programs and services, and compensate those programs at a rate that reflects the actual costs if appropriate price and volume adjustments had been applied to First Nations core funding since 1996;

·        design and implement new, non-discretionary and secure funding frameworks based on need, and introduce guaranteed funding escalators to reflect the actual costs of population and inflation growth in the future;

·        consider resource revenue-sharing agreements with First Nations; and

·        ensure that the tax system treats First Nations citizens fairly, with lawful obligations fully met.

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The Association des producteurs de films et de télévision du Québec requests that the federal government:

·        double the funding of the Canada Feature Film Fund and create a permanent, $5 million separate fund for documentary feature films;

·        renew support for international co-production, including through tax measures, direct funding, facilitating assistance with foreign marketing, an amended mandate for Telefilm Canada, simplifying the conditions for accessing funding, and easing the policy and guiding principles of co-production; and

·        maintain the objectives and current structure of the Canadian Television Fund as well as support for television production, including five-year funding on a multi-year basis.

The Association of Atlantic Universities requests that the federal government:

·        ensure that the tax system is able to generate the revenues needed to grow federal investment in universities in order to maximize their contribution to a prosperous and competitive Atlantic Canada;

·        ensure that the tax system has a proper balance between the taxation power of the federal government and the provincial/territorial governments, bearing in mind the need for the federal government to have sufficient taxation power to allow it to invest in different regions of Canada in order to build a prosperous country;

·        continue, and enhance, its investment in university research;

·        invest in a national university research program that recognizes and rewards institutional quality and innovation over size, provides disproportionate support for smaller institutions, supports institutions where researchers carry a heavier teaching load than those in research-intensive institutions, and recognizes and supports those institutions that have either a local or regional economic development mandate;

·        increase its investment in young researchers and graduate scholarships;

·        increase its investment in the marketing of Atlantic Canada as an education destination to international students;

·        improve university participation rates and access to higher education for traditionally under-represented groups;

·        invest in improvements to university infrastructure; and

·        cooperate and collaborate with the provincial/territorial governments, universities and the private sector to establish objectives for increased investment in post-secondary education in Atlantic Canada, with accountability for results.

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The Association of Canadian Academic Healthcare Organizations requests that the federal government:

·        adopt a sustainable, balanced and multi-year fiscal framework for public investments in Canada’s health research enterprise;

·        in collaboration with the provinces/territories, establish a $1 billion,
five-year national health human resources fund; and

·        create a one-time health delivery infrastructure fund to assist teaching centres/hospitals in building or rebuilding their delivery capacity.

The Association of Canadian Publishers requests that the federal government:

·        strengthen the Book Publishing Industry Development Program as well as other federal funding programs that support competitive marketing initiatives;

·        develop financial and/or regulatory incentives for public institutions to buy Canadian books;

·        strengthen copyright protection to reflect the vulnerability of digital products; and

·        proceed with the recommendations of the Independent Blue Ribbon Panel on Grant and Contribution Programs.

The Association of Fundraising Professionals requests that the federal government:

·        create a government-sponsored national philanthropy
day in order to recognize the importance of the voluntary sector and increase public awareness of charitable giving.

The Association of Municipalities of Ontario requests that the federal government:

·        ensure the existence of predictable, longer-term infrastructure funding for municipalities through a flexible, national framework that allows sustainable and secure programs tailored to the needs of individual jurisdictions;

·        enable the municipal sector to play a more substantive role in determining national infrastructure investment priorities;

·        commit to a national, long-term strategy to provide affordable housing, and sustain funding to support homeless initiatives;

·        invest in energy efficiency;

·        provide an improved federal-provincial/territorial relationship;

·        ensure that municipalities have access to sustainable and predictable federal infrastructure funding; and

·        make permanent the federal sharing of gas tax revenues.

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The Association of Nova Scotia University Teachers requests that the federal government:

·        restore funding to the post-secondary sector under the provisions of a post-secondary education act that would ensure accountability on the part of the provincial/territorial governments as well as enable improvements to the quality and affordability of post-secondary education;

·        modify the education funding formula to reflect the fact that Nova Scotia is educating a greater share of the Canadian student population, perhaps through an allocation of funding on a per-student rather than a per-capita basis;

·        reassess the Twenty-First Century Research Chairs Program and the administration of funding through the Canada Foundation for Innovation to allow the problems of regional inequity to be addressed;

·        increase significantly the unrestricted funding available through the Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council, the Natural Sciences and Engineering Research Council and the Canadian Institutes for Health Research;

·        maintain the 2005 Atlantic Accord as negotiated in that year by the federal and Nova Scotia governments; and

·        address the increase in student tuition fees over the last decade through a restoration of core funding to levels that would allow tuition fees to be reduced and through the introduction of need-based programs.

The Association of Universities and Colleges of Canada requests that the federal government:

·        ensure balanced investments in the four pillars of university research: the production of new ideas; the development, attraction and retention of highly qualified research talent; cutting-edge research infrastructure; and essential institutional support for research efforts through the indirect costs of research program;

·        increase investments in graduate students through scholarships and research support;

·        develop a research support initiative to provide opportunities for more graduate students to be actively engaged in the research conducted by their faculty mentors;

·        develop incentives for research internships and research-based co-op placements for recent graduates;

·        increase the number of young researchers in Canada through graduate studies scholarships, and increase opportunities for young researchers to develop and apply their skills and launch their careers;

·        attract more international students to Canada, particularly graduate students, through a program of international graduate scholarships and greater investment in international graduate student recruitment and international education marketing;

·        increase its commitment to international research collaboration through the federal granting councils;

·        work with the provincial/territorial governments and universities on establishing objectives for investments and on developing Canada-wide reporting on how the Canadian post-secondary system is performing, particularly when compared to competitor countries;

·        work with the provinces/territories to establish objectives for increased investment in post-secondary education and to ensure their implementation;

·        continue federal involvement in providing non-repayable, need-based student financial assistance, at least at current levels; and

·        renew the mandate of the Canada Millennium Scholarship Foundation.

The Association of Yukon Communities requests that the federal government:

·        include substantial base funding in any national program applied to the North, rather than allocations on a purely per-capita basis, with consideration given to land mass or other factors;

·        allocate additional funding for quality child care, post-secondary education, housing for First Nations people, research and development, and municipal infrastructure;

·        continue efforts to reduce the federal debt; and

·        include a direct municipal component in the Building Canada Fund.

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The Association nationale des éditeurs de livres requests that the federal government:

·        provide increased emphasis on the promotion of publishing activities in book industry support programs;

·        provide significant support for the strategic positioning of francophone publishing in the digital world;

·        support the development of a major, national translation plan to provide for the translation of Anglophone, francophone and Aboriginal works into French, English and Aboriginal languages, with funding of $15 million over three years; and

·        reject any legislative provision that diminishes copyright.

The BC Association of Magazines Publishers requests that the federal government:

·        adopt the goal of Canada’s magazine publishing sector to ensure that a least 50% of the magazines sold in Canada are Canadian-content publications, and partner with the sector to achieve this objective through stable and strategic investments in policy and program initiatives;

·        continue to ensure that adequate budgets are available for the Publications Assistance Program (PAP) and the Canada Magazine Fund (CMF) to achieve the readership objective;

·        either direct Canada Post to continue supporting the PAP or replace Canada Post’s existing contribution to the PAP with funding from the Department of Canadian Heritage; and

·        carefully review the role of Canada Post in magazine delivery in the future.

The Bell Pensioners’ Group Inc. requests that the federal government:

·        initiate a national, non-partisan, in-depth review of all aspects of the Canadian tax system, with the objective of simplifying and streamlining the system; and

·        protect and promote the continuation of defined benefit pension plans in Canada, including measures related to Department of Finance review of the changes needed to pension legislation regarding defined benefit pension plans (such as in respect of solvency), modifications to other federal legislation, a government review/commission on the impact and effectiveness of the current Canadian retirement income system, leadership regarding provinces and their pension legislation.

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Bioniche Life Sciences Inc. requests that the federal government:

·        commit $33 million annually to support the application of the E.coli 0157:H7 cattle vaccine in the national herd, with funding potentially occurring through the Advancing Agriculture and Agri-Food program.

The Boîte à Science requests that the federal government:

·        provide funding of $4 million annually for a science centre in Québec City.

The British Columbia Real Estate Association requests that the federal government:

·        increase the borrowing limit in respect of the Home Buyers Plan to $25,000 per plan holder ($50,000 per couple); and

·        adjust the borrowing limit in respect of the Home Buyers Plan every five years in accordance with increases in the Consumer Price Index.

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The Calgary Chamber of Voluntary Organizations requests that the federal government:

·        implement a national charities strategy, with components that include a sustained commitment to implementation of the recommendations of the Independent Blue Ribbon Panel on Grant and Contribution Programs, long-term funding to support the ongoing collection and dissemination of mission-critical information through the Canada Survey on Giving, Volunteering and Participation and the Satellite Accounts, tax measures to encourage private donations, and the establishment of a new Blue Ribbon Panel to explore innovative financial mechanisms to support the charitable/not-for-profit sector that go beyond the current tax measures.

The Calgary Zoo requests that the federal government:

·        contribute, over the next four years, $30 million to the infrastructure and $10 million to the outreach and research elements of Project Discovery.

Campaign 2000 requests that the federal government:

·        develop a poverty-reduction strategy with specific targets, set timetables, an action plan and an accountability mechanism, as well as with the key components of a comprehensive child benefit system, more good jobs at living wages, a universally accessible system of high-quality early learning and child care services, full and timely implementation of the Kelowna Accord including a focus on urban Aboriginal issues, significantly expanded affordable housing, a freeze on or a lowering of tuition fees; an increase in need-based grants for students, and a better accountability mechanism in respect of the Canada Social Transfer.

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Canada’s Association for the Fifty-Plus requests that the federal government:

·        promote the image of retirees as taxpayers;

·        increase all pensions in accordance with the actual increase in the Consumer Price Index over the past five years;

·        reform the Canada Pension Plan survivor benefit to permit the total amount received by a couple to continue for life following the death of one partner, and extend the benefit to include blood relatives;

·        return the Canada Pension Plan death benefit to its pre-1997 level, with increases for inflation since that time;

·        end the integration of the Canada Pension Plan with occupational pension plans;

·        ensure that federally regulated Life Income Funds can be unlocked in their entirety (50% at age 55 and the balance at age 65), with commuted Life Income Funds rolled into Locked-in Retirement Income Funds;

·        enhance funding for the National Home Care Program, with an additional $2 billion allocated to respite care for unpaid/informal caregivers and an additional amount (to be determined) for chronic/continuing and community care; and

·        abolish mandatory retirement in federally regulated industries.

The Canada Millennium Scholarship Foundation requests that the federal government:

·        renew the mandate of the Canada Millennium Scholarship Foundation and provide additional, up-front, multi-year funding.

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Canada’s Research-Based Pharmaceutical Companies requests that the federal government:

·        approve the necessary increases to Health Canada’s core budget, consistent with the 2006 report of the Auditor General of Canada, so that the Health Product and Foods Branch can acquire the necessary scientific human resources, appropriately modernize the Food and Drug Regulations, and sustain the Department’s performance in the regulatory review of health products.

The Canadian Alliance of Student Associations requests that the federal government:

·        ensure that federal transfer funding for post-secondary education is truly dedicated funding, and work with the provinces/territories to develop objectives for post-secondary education funding as well as mechanisms to ensure that funding is directed at meeting these objectives;

·        ensure that additional federal transfer funding for post-secondary education does not displace existing funding;

·        increase federal transfer funding for post-secondary education to a minimum level of $4 billion in annual cash transfers, increased annually according to inflation and demographic growth;

·        assume a leadership role in working with the provinces/territories to develop a pan-Canadian accord on post-secondary education;

·        implement Advantage Canada’s commitment to modernize Canada’s system of student financial assistance through a holistic review of all student financial assistance programs;

·        ensure that a modernized system of student financial assistance results in an affordable, accessible post-secondary education system for all Canadians, with an effective, accountable student financial assistance system providing federal assistance to students in need and a focus on encouraging post-secondary participation by Canadians currently under-represented in colleges and universities;

·        make the Canada Access Grant available to students throughout the duration of their studies, and cover a portion of the total costs of education;

·        work with Aboriginal communities and the provinces/territories to develop a plan to increase the participation and retention of Aboriginal Canadians in post-secondary education;

·        increase Aboriginal student grant funding through the Post-Secondary Student Support Program, the Canada Student Loans Program and/or the Canada Millennium Scholarship Foundation; and

·        renew or indefinitely extend the mandate of the Canada Millennium Scholarship Foundation and provide it with funding that would enable it to continue providing need-based grants to the same, or a greater, proportion of students as it did in 1999.

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The Canadian Association for Community Living requests that the federal government:

·        invest in the Organization of American States Decade of the Americas for the Rights and Dignity of Persons with Disabilities and in the implementation of the United Nations Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities;

·        enhance disability supports;

·        enhance its income support role in alleviating the poverty of persons with disabilities and their families, thereby facilitating provincial/territorial
reinvestment in disability-related supports and services;

·        create new labour force inclusion measures; and

·        ensure a national social development role in order to promote accessibility and community inclusion.

The Canadian Association of Food Banks requests that the federal government:

·        make poverty reduction an ongoing federal spending priority;

·        increase the value of the Canada Social Transfer to pre-1995 levels;

·        institute a national strategy for affordable housing; and

·        expand the recent investment in child care spaces, and move forward on the recommendations of the Ministerial Advisory Committee on the Government of Canada’s Child Care Spaces Initiative.

The Canadian Association of Gift Planners requests that the federal government:

·        review the disbursement quota legislation implemented to date in order to ensure that it enables charities to focus on productivity growth.

The Canadian Association for Graduate Studies requests that the federal government:

·        increase funding for the federal granting councils in order to support increased numbers of graduate students, and to enhance the quality of research training and experiences of graduate students;

·        with the provinces/territories, expand participation in graduate education through student financial assistance, and provide the additional physical and human resources needed to expand graduate enrolment and programs;

·        attract more talented international students to graduate studies through a scholarship program for top international students and through the promotion of Canadian graduate programs abroad; and

·        promote graduate student mobility through a national graduate student research exchange program and portability of Canada Graduate Scholarships abroad.

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The Canadian Association of Petroleum Producers requests that the federal government:

·        consult with industry and sectors on potential initiatives before announcing them as policy;

·        expand support to the Petroleum Human Resources Sector Council and other Human Resources and Social Development Canada programs;

·        support efforts to promote trade, technical and professional training; and

·        assist in identifying, coordinating and implementing multi-stakeholder strategies to address existing and forecast human resource shortages.

The Canadian Association of Research Libraries requests that the federal government:

·        increase funding for the indirect costs of research program to the recognized international level of 40% of the total research grant; and

·        continue to invest in the Canadian broadband network to meet the needs of the country’s learning communities.

The Canadian Association of Science Centres requests that the federal government:

·        establish a new federal program for Canada’s science centres, with a federal investment of $200 million over five years.

The Canadian Automobile Association requests that the federal government:

·        provide industry with incentives to make alternative fuels available and accessible to consumers; and

·        extend the Eco-Auto rebate program to 2010.

The Canadian Automobile Dealers Association requests that the federal government:

·        ensure that Canada Revenue Agency audits are conducted professionally and efficiently.

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The Canadian Booksellers Association requests that the federal government:

·        ensure sustained funding for Canada’s cultural sectors; and

·        continue funding for the Book Publishing Industry Development Program.

The Canadian Chamber of Commerce requests that the federal government:

·        reform the Employment Insurance program to improve accountability and fairness;

·        consistent with efforts designed to reduce the tax compliance burden on small businesses, identify ways in which to reduce the compliance burden on larger companies;

·        review Canada’s tax competitiveness and determine how best to use the nation’s tax system to stimulate economic growth and prosperity, with urgent implementation of needed reforms; and

·        continue to explore ways in which to reduce the tax compliance burden for all taxpayers.

The Canadian Child Care Federation requests that the federal government:

·        increase awareness and understanding of child care needs in order to maximize the potential of existing initiatives such as the Universal Child Care Benefit and the incentives to businesses to create spaces, and to plan for future initiatives, including implementation of recommendations 8 and 9 in the 2007 report from the Ministerial Advisory Committee on the Government of Canada’s Child Care Spaces Initiative;

·        apply a national framework of standards and accountability to federal child care funding currently provided to the provinces/territories;

·        introduce and encourage initiatives to address the child care sector’s human resources challenges, including acting on recommendation 10 in the 2007 report from the Ministerial Advisory Committee on the Government of Canada’s Child Care Spaces Initiative;

·        create a mechanism to support ongoing federal/provincial/territorial collaboration directed at resolving the many child care issues shared across the country, such as training standards to facilitate mobility of the workforce from region to region, improved wages and working conditions, the creation of spaces that meet the flexible needs of families, and the encouragement of family-friendly policies in workplaces;

·        articulate a broad vision of family policy in Canada, with quality child care as a cornerstone, along with extended maternity and parental leave, and employer incentives to adopt family-friendly policies; and

·        support voluntary sector organizations concerned with healthy child development, including acting on the recommendations of the Independent Blue Ribbon Panel on Grant and Contribution Programs.

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The Canadian Conference of the Arts requests that the federal government:

·        make an additional, recurring increase in funding of $20 million to the Canada Council for the Arts, with a view to an eventual annual budget of $300 million;

·        renew, on a recurring basis, the Tomorrow Starts Today envelope of programs;

·        announce the parameters of a new national museum policy;

·        expedite the introduction of the next phase of revisions to the Copyright Act;

·        allocate new funds to the Department of Foreign Affairs and International Trade to support the efforts in promoting Canadian culture by foreign affairs staff as well as by those artists, creators and arts organizations building foreign audiences and revenue diversification;

·        clarify immediately the criteria of the new program supporting festivals;

·        recognize the importance of the Canadian Television Fund as well as the policies and objectives under which it operates; and

·        ensure that any substantive change to the policies and objectives under which the Canadian Television Fund operates be the result of an open and transparent process consistent with the cultural objectives in the Broadcasting Act.

The Canadian Consortium for Research requests that the federal government:

·        increase funding for the core operating costs of post-secondary education institutions through the creation of a dedicated transfer to the provinces/territories, with the transfer being governed by nationally established principles that ensure quality, assuring academic integrity and equitable opportunities for access to all Canadians, containing binding enforcement mechanisms, and being set at a fixed percentage of Gross Domestic Product;

·        increase funding for the federal granting councils; and

·        re-invest in government research infrastructure, including government science-based departments and agencies.

The Canadian Council for International Co-operation requests that the federal government:

·        establish a budgetary plan and timetable to increase Official Development Assistance over the next ten years to reach the United Nations aid target of 0.7% of Gross National Product (GNP), with at least a 15% increase annually for the next ten years to achieve 0.4% of GDP by 2010, 0.6% by 2015 and 0.7% by 2017;

·        ensure that increases to the International Assistance Envelope (IAE) are targeted to the Official Development Assistance elements of the IAE;

·        increase the portion of the IAE devoted to aid by at least $600 million in 2008-2009, by $700 million in 2009-2010 and by $800 million in
2010-2011, with each of these amounts added to the base for future calculations of aid increases; and

·        support legislation in respect of parliamentary accountability for Canadian Official Development Assistance, which establishes poverty reduction as the exclusive goal.

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The Canadian Dance Assembly requests that the federal government:

·        respond to the recommendations of the Independent Blue Ribbon Panel on Grant and Contribution Programs regarding over-accountability and the availability of multi-year funding;

·        continue to increase funding, on a permanent basis, to the Canada Council for the Arts, with a view to raising the Council’s budget to a minimum of $300 million dollars annually by 2010;

·        reinstate funds taken from the Public Diplomacy envelope at the Department of Foreign Affairs and International Trade;

·        increase funds to encourage artists, art organizations and foreign affairs staff to build foreign audiences, diversify revenue and increase Canada’s profile abroad; and

·        make permanent the funding for the Tomorrow Starts Today initiative.

The Canadian Dental Association requests that the federal government:

·        invest in public oral health promotion and the collection of statistical oral health indicators;

·        in conjunction with stakeholders, work to raise awareness of oral health issues within government and to the public through oral health promotion efforts;

·        re-invest in tobacco denormalization and other tobacco reduction strategies as cited by the Canadian Coalition for Action on Tobacco;

·        adopt a need-based approach in creating a social safety net aimed at providing oral care services to socio-economically disadvantaged Canadians;

·        respect key principles, including free choice, privacy of information and treatment decisions made in joint consultation, among others, when new oral health funding or delivery models are being considered or when existing models are being altered;

·        investigate financial options to encourage access to dental care, including consideration for seniors of personal wellness investment funds;

·        continue to evolve the Non-Insured Health Benefits Dental program for First Nations and Inuit Canadians;

·        increase funding to dental schools;

·        encourage greater financial support for dental schools on the basis of their provision of dental care;

·        make oral health a visible priority by allocating more proportionate funding to oral research;

·        permit dentists and other self-employed individuals to withdraw funds without penalty from their Registered Retirement Savings Plans in order to facilitate maternity leave; and

·        increase financial support for students in the form of bursaries and scholarships.

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The Canadian Dental Hygienists Association requests that the federal government:

·        work with the provinces/territories to provide leadership, policies and funding (36% of total oral health spending, or $3,579 million) for national oral health promotion and disease prevention programs for low-income Canadians, children, persons with disabilities and seniors; and

·        grant full program status to the Childrens’ Oral Health Initiative within the First Nations and Inuit Health Branch.

The Canadian Egg Marketing Agency requests that the federal government:

·        immediately establish an interim compensation program so that the true costs of avian influenza disease outbreaks are compensated;

·        support the redistribution of federal revenues to federal production insurance programs in order to allow the inclusion of livestock production and coverage for all perils; and

·        support supply management.

The Canadian Electricity Association requests that the federal government:

·        re-enact both Class 24 (air) and Class 27 (water) in the federal regulations, for a five-year period, to achieve lower emissions in Canada; and

·        establish an energy efficiency grant program to fund energy efficiency programs.

The Canadian Federation of Apartment Associations requests that the federal government:

·        eliminate the 0%- and 5%-down mortgage programs; and

·        adopt policy measures to promote housing quality and affordability for those whose income and wealth place them in a poor position to access the benefits of home ownership, perhaps through a national housing allowance program.

The Canadian Federation for the Humanities and Social Sciences requests that the federal government:

·        increase research funding to the federal granting councils by amounts that exceed the level of inflation;

·        remove the imposition of external targeting measures on the base budgets of the federal granting councils;

·        increase the amount of provincial/territorial post-secondary transfers to pre-program review levels;

·        create a separate transfer for post-secondary education to improve the accountability in respect of federal investments while allowing flexibility for the provinces/territories to determine priority spending within these envelopes;

·        continue its investment in the Canada Graduate Scholarship program by creating additional scholarships for graduate students and allocating them according to the proportion of students enrolled by discipline; and

·        increase funding for the indirect costs of research program to reimburse an average of 40% of the indirect costs associated with research funded by the federal granting councils.

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The Canadian Federation of Nurses Unions requests that the federal government:

·        support innovation and research on programs to retain workers;

·        use the Employment Insurance program to provide income and education in order that health care workers, and nurses in particular, can expand their scope of practice;

·        support a national child care program;

·        invest in the coordination of health human resources, including through a pan-Canadian health human resources strategy;

·        invest in post-secondary and continuing education as well as skills training for health care workers;

·        partner with the provinces/territories to fund a national pharmacare program; and

·        invest in order to ensure improved access to medically necessary drug treatments and to limit the costs of pharmaceutical drugs.

The Canadian Federation of Students requests that the federal government:

·        give a high priority to affordable post-secondary education;

·        phase out the education and tuition fee tax credits, Registered Education Savings Plans and the Canada Education Savings Grant programs and apply the savings to a new, national system of need-based grants;

·        replace the Canada Millennium Scholarship Foundation with a national system of need-based grants delivered through the Canada Student Loans Program;

·        immediately remove the funding cap on the Post-Secondary Student Support Program and adopt the recommendations in the Sixth Report of the House of Commons Standing Committee on Aboriginal Affairs and Northern Development regarding post-secondary education; and

·        in cooperation with the provinces/territories, create a post-secondary education cash transfer payment, guided by principles set out in a post-secondary education act.

The Canadian Federation of University Women requests that the federal government:

·        strengthen Canada’s social foundations and meet Canada’s global responsibilities by funding peaceful, equitable and environmentally sustainable policies at all levels;

·        use gender equity indicators within all policies and programs, with special programs targeted to women and girls;

·        increase access to Employment Insurance, with elimination of the two-week waiting period, an increase in maximum yearly insurable earnings, a lowering of the hours required for eligibility and an increase in benefits;

·        implement the recommendations of the 2004 Pay Equity Task Force;

·        re-establish the federal minimum wage at an hourly rate of $10;

·        increase Canada Pension Plan survivor benefits to 70%;

·        amend the Canada Pension Plan to include a drop-out provision for people who care for individuals with disabilities or the elderly;

·        establish a pension program for rural women living on farms;

·        implement a national, affordable, high-quality, not-for-profit child care program within a properly funded and regulated framework; and

·        restore funding for research and advocacy on women’s issues.

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The Canadian Finance & Leasing Association requests that the federal government:

·        lead a national coalition for growth and prosperity, enlisting interested parties who share these goals; and.

·        enhance the positive strengths of a competitive domestic marketplace.

The Canadian Foundation for Climate and Atmospheric Sciences requests that the federal government:

·        enhance research support for air quality, extreme weather and other climate sciences by increasing support targeted to these areas;

·        use the Canadian Foundation for Climate and Atmospheric Sciences to deliver support to the academic community;

·        allocate funding of $25 million per year for ten years;

·        expand the mandate of the Canadian Foundation for Climate and Atmospheric Sciences to allow support of interdisciplinary work;

·        expand support for international scientific partnerships and project offices of strategic importance to Canada;

·        expand support for research that would contribute to the public good; and

·        invest $250 million in targeted research over ten years to support research on issues of environmental protection and security, mobilize science and technology to Canada’s advantage, and contribute to a prosperous, safe and informed future for Canadians.

The Canadian Gas Association requests that the federal government:

·        fund a showcase program to support the development of 20 new urban integrated energy systems across Canada by 2020, with a maximum funding contribution of $1 million per project and a minimum 50% contribution from the project’s proponents.

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The Canadian Health Food Association requests that the federal government:

·        provide funding for the Natural Health Products Directorate; and

·        provide funding for the Canadian Food Inspection Agency to ensure implementation of, compliance with and enforcement of new organic regulations.

The Canadian Healthcare Association requests that the federal government:

·        make an additional investment of $6.2 billion over five years in order to accelerate the development and implementation of a pan-Canadian electronic health record and to broaden its scope;

·        invest $1 billion over three years in a renewed medical/diagnostic equipment fund linked to the safety of health workers and patients;

·        in partnership with the provinces/territories, establish a national investment program of $5 billion over five years for capital infrastructure for health;

·        invest $1 billion over three years to support a home care program with ongoing/chronic care services linked to pan-Canadian objectives while respecting the provincial/territorial jurisdiction regarding the delivery of care;

·        address facility-based long-term care on a pan-Canadian basis;

·        invest at least 1% of total health spending in health research;

·        move ahead expeditiously on the pharmacare strategy and programs, with pan-Canadian objectives to address gaps in access, lack of equity and undue financial burden;

·        develop and support the optimal use of pharmaceuticals; and

·        provide equal per-capita transfers for health through increased funding for the Canada Health Transfer.

The Canadian Home Builder’s Association requests that the federal government:

·        take action to support housing affordability and choice across Canada;

·        replace the Contract Payment Reporting System with an effective regulatory approach to the underground economy;

·        require all firms and individuals in the construction industry to register for a business number;

·        in respect of federal infrastructure investment, give priority to local and regional infrastructure investments that sustain new urban growth, rejuvenate services to existing built-up areas and reduce financial pressures on new home buyers; and

·        focus on investments in water and sewer systems, roads, bridges, transit and waste management, with the benefits from these investments systematically monitored and reported.

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The Canadian Institute of Actuaries requests that the federal government:

·        implement public policy measures to increase the use of defined benefit pension plans; and

·        remove disincentives for defined benefit plan sponsors to adopt higher levels of funding.

The Canadian Institutes of Health Research, the Natural Sciences and Engineering Research Council of Canada and the Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council of Canada request that the federal government:

·        increase investments in research.

The Canadian Institute for Neutron Scattering requests that the federal goverment:

·        allocate $800 million over five years in the Canadian Neutron Facility.

The Canadian Library Association requests that the federal government:

·        continue the Community Access Program;

·        invest in public library infrastructure, including through changes to the Infrastructure Canada Program;

·        improve library services for Canadians with print disabilities, such as books in braille or on tape, including through the release of funding in respect of the National Network for Equitable Library Services; and

·        guarantee funding for the Library Book Rate.

Canadian Light Source Inc. requests that the federal government:

·        invest in sufficient operating funding for national research facilities; and

·        allocate funds for continued operations of Canadian Light Source Inc.

The Canadian Lung Association requests that the federal government:

·        continue to make combating lung disease a top priority while, at the same time, expanding and promoting the programs it offers that benefit the lung health of Canadians;

·        make an investment in the first phase of implementation of the National Lung Health Plan for Action, with a funding commitment that would include financing for the government portion of the implementation of short- and medium-term objectives identified in the Plan for Action and for the costs associated with the ongoing coordination of the action plan implementation;

·        work with the provinces/territories to identify investment strategies that meet the long-term objectives of federal/provincial/territorial lung health action plans;

·        increase funding by $207 million over seven years for direct research on the causes, exacerbations, prevention and improved treatment of lung disease as well as to build research capacity by supporting trainees and clinician-researchers in pulmonary research;

·        increase funding for the Canadian Institute for Health Research to expand the knowledge base and to facilitate the development of innovative technologies, treatments and medicines;

·        expand the pilot program announced for the National Air Quality Health Index to include all major cities nationwide;

·        increase funding for programs that support its clean air and environmental objectives;

·        make targeted investments in companion programs that assist individual Canadians in recognizing how they can reduce their contributions to air pollution and greenhouse gas emissions;

·        maintain funding to the Canadian Health Network;

·        work with the Public Health Agency of Canada on a plan to expand the knowledge base and reach of the Canadian Health Network through increased partnerships with leading national public and private health organizations;

·        provide long-term, sustainable and enhanced funding to the Tobacco Control Program;

·        take immediate steps to renew support for Aboriginal tobacco control efforts;

·        work to develop a mechanism that would provide sustained technical and financial assistance to strengthen tobacco control in the developing world;

·        continue to provide funding to the Global Fund to Fight Malaria, AIDS and Tuberculosis, and allow multi-lateral organizations to utilize this support for projects designed to prevent and combat tuberculosis around the world; and

·        increase investments in Canadian-based organizations to provide support to Canadian-run tuberculosis field projects and operations overseas.

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The Canadian Manufacturers & Exporters requests that the federal government:

·        ensure that federal budgets are balanced, that there are adequate contingency reserves to offset economic downturns and that unspent reserves continue to be used to pay down the federal debt;

·        increase investment in new technology and in innovation;

·        ensure compliance with the User Fee Act; and

·        make investments to provide reliable access to a cost-competitive supply of energy, ensure further improvements in the security and efficiency of our borders, improve and expand north-south and east-west logistics networks, provide more effective support for the innovation activities of Canadian businesses, and provide more effective financing mechanisms for Canadian exporters engaged in new market development around the world.

The Canadian Meat Council requests that the federal government:

·        work with the provinces/territories in respect of the elimination of internal trade barriers.

The Canadian Medical Association requests that the federal government:

·        extend the interest relief on Canada Student Loans for medical residents pursuing post-graduate training; and

·        consider the establishment of a catastrophic pharmaceutical program to be administered through reimbursement of provincial/territorial and private prescription drug programs.

The Canadian Museums Association requests that the federal government:

·        review and revitalize the Museums Assistance Program, focusing on providing community museums with support to develop and implement private giving and fundraising initiatives; and

·        with the provincial/territorial and municipal governments as well as the museum sector, develop and implement a new national museum policy.

The Canadian Paraplegic Association requests that the federal government:

·        ensure the existence of appropriate community supports for those with a spinal cord injury;

·        increase funding in order to improve programs and services offered to those with a spinal cord injury; and

·        improve services for First Nations peoples with a spinal cord injury.

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The Canadian Parks and Wilderness Society requests that the federal government:

·        include land, ocean and freshwater wilderness conservation as part of a comprehensive strategy to address climate change, with an investment of $1.5 billion over five years and $405 million annually thereafter;

·        complete the national parks system and other forms of federal protected areas, and ensure their connectivity and long-term ecological integrity, with an investment of $600 million over five years and $15 million annually thereafter;

·        invest $750 million over five years and $250 million annually thereafter to establish a national system of marine protected areas and implement integrated oceans management plans for Canada’s oceans, with funding to be assigned on the basis of firm targets and timelines; and

·        implement the Canada-Ontario Great Lakes Agreement provisions for the establishment of a network of aquatic protected areas in each of the Great Lakes.

Canadian Pensioners Concerned Inc. — Ontario Division requests that the federal government:

·        allocate funding for education in ethical business entrepreneurship;

·        with the provinces/territories, ensure the existence of literacy programs for all age groups;

·        support immigrant settlement programs;

·        support the concept of lifelong learning, with tax expenditures, loans and grants;

·        invest in early childhood education and development; and

·        ensure that students who graduate with a new credential not be required to pay back the loans they have received from the government until their income has reached a certain level above Statistics Canada’s low income cut-offs.

The Canadian Real Estate Association and the London and St. Thomas Association of Realtors request that the federal government:

·        develop an integrated national housing policy, with federal leadership and funding to ensure national standards, new options for home ownership directed at lower-income earners, measures to combat homelessness, significant improvements to Aboriginal housing, and measures to maintain and make better use of the existing housing stock;

·        amend the mandate of the Canada Mortgage and Housing Corporation to include mortgage guarantees at commercial lending rates for brownfield redevelopment projects with a residential end-use component;

·        improve the First Nations Market Housing Fund and the general condition of First Nations housing; and

·        provide broad terms of reference to a special parliamentary committee with a fixed mandate to develop a comprehensive national housing strategy.

The Canadian Society for Medical Laboratory Science requests that the federal government:

·        invest in clinical education by targeting funds for research into the value and effectiveness of clinical simulation, and for dedicated clinical educators to support onsite clinical education;

·        invest in international credential recognition and review, and provide targeted, long-term and sustainable funding for bridging programs for medical laboratory technologists as well as funding to not-for-profit organizations to offset the operational costs associated with international credential recognition and review;

·        invest in quality-of-work-life initiatives, including through national strategies to provide more full-time employment opportunities for new graduates in the health care professions and to address quality-of-work-life issues in the health care system, including for medical laboratory technologists; and

·        invest in recruitment into the medical laboratory profession through such measures as debt relief/scholarships to students entering medical laboratory science programs.

Canadian Sport Centre Calgary requests that the federal government:

·        increase its investment in sport, with an initial investment of $30 million to implement Canada’s Summer Sport Plan (Road to Excellence) and to complement the development phase of the Podium Canada private-public partnership, with the initial investment followed by a comprehensive series of tax and fiscal measures that further the development of a new economics for sport in Canada;

·        establish an expert panel of public, private, philanthropic and sport leaders to further the development of a new economics for sport in Canada, with this new economics model including a number of corporate and individual tax measures and such other measures as designated sport and recreation infrastructure funds; and

·        partner with other levels of government, the private sector and the Calgary Olympic Development Agency to build the Centre of Sport Excellence to rejuvenate and modernize the existing facilities from the 1988 Olympic Winter Games and to add new facilities.

The Canadian Steel Producers Association requests that the federal government:

·        maintain continued strong fiscal management, including balanced budgets and spending growth at rates less than the growth in the Gross Domestic Product;

·        enhance the effectiveness and security of trade among the North American Free Trade Agreement countries through investments that enhance border and trade infrastructure; and

·        strengthen implementation of the Global Commerce Strategy.

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The Canadian Teachers’ Federation requests that the federal government:

·        support the recommendations of the Independent Blue Ribbon Panel on Grant and Contribution Programs regarding funding, with particular emphasis on additional government support for Status of Women Canada, skills and literacy programs, and the Court Challenges Program;

·        restore funding for Status of Women Canada and rescind decisions on office closures;

·        ensure that Status of Women Canada funding continues to be available for advocacy and research that are specific to women’s issues, and that the language in respect of legal and political equality is returned to the mandate of the Women’s Program;

·        reinstate funding for adult literacy programs;

·        reinstate funding for the Court Challenges Program;

·        reinstate the funding agreements reached with the provincial/territorial governments to establish 100,000 new licensed child care spaces;

·        use the Early Childhood Development Agreement as a model for developing comprehensive national children and youth strategies;

·        give priority to funding proposals that foster partnerships and the integration of services for children and youth, in particular with additional support for immigrant and refugee children, Aboriginal children and youth, and francophone children in a minority context;

·        develop policies to address the non-job-related services and resources required by immigrant families and, in particular, those of children and youth;

·        include, as part of federal-provincial/territorial agreements concerning immigrants and refugees, child- and youth-service-centred services;

·        adequately fund First Nations child welfare agencies to deliver in-home support and prevention services to First Nations children and their families;

·        ensure the existence and accessibility of culturally based intervention programs when behavioural abnormalities and/or learning difficulties consistent with fetal alcohol spectrum disorder (FASD) are identified; and

·        ensure that families and children challenged with FASD have adequate training and an opportunity to develop community-based supports, and that parents of these children have meaningful support.

The Canadian Union of Public Employees requests that the federal government:

·        develop a vision and plan to provide early learning and care for all Canadian children, and commit $1.2 billion as the first step to guarantee a space in a public or not-for-profit program for all children three to five years of age, increasing by $1.2 billion annually until it reaches $4.8 billion;

·        increase transfers for post-secondary education by $1 billion as part of a separate post-secondary transfer, together with accountability guarantees that public funds will be allocated only to public not-for-profit institutions to reduce tuition costs, end the trend to privatization, increase access, and improve working and studying conditions on campus;

·        commit to a long-term plan to eliminate the infrastructure deficit by providing municipalities with access to a substantial and growing source of revenues;

·        eliminate the fund for public-private sector partnerships (P3s), the P3 Office and the requirement to consider P3s;

·        strengthen public health care, with measures to ensure that public funds are allocated only to health care that is publicly delivered;

·        establish a national pharmacare program and a national drug formulary in cooperation with the provinces/territories;

·        increase investments in skills, literacy, workplace training and labour market development, with delivery through the public/not-for-profit system whenever possible;

·        reform the Employment Insurance system to include training, broader coverage and improved benefits for workers in all forms of employment and unemployment;

·        meet commitments to Aboriginal Canadians and First Nations with adequate, predictable and sustained funding for health, housing, education, training, job opportunities and economic opportunity programs;

·        use tax incentives, subsidies, transfers, regulations and trade agreements to encourage sustainable regional economic development of resources;

·        develop a comprehensive action plan, sector-specific strategies and an overall vision for Canadian industry in the 21st century; and

·        lead in building a green economy and a sustainable future, with a credible national action plan, a large-scale program to retrofit public buildings and operations, investments in infrastructure and public transit, funding for health, community and social services to assist with the impact of climate change, development of new technologies and standards, creation of a green jobs investment fund and a just transition fund, improved tax incentives and subsidies, and the establishment of a price for pollution.

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The Canadian Urban Transit Association requests that the federal government:

·        commit $2 billion annually to maintain, renew and expand transit services across Canada;

·        support a national, cooperative transit research program to promote information sharing, and to enable innovation and make transit operations more effective and efficient;

·        improve intergovernmental cooperation to ensure that accountability measures are in place; and

·        require recipient communities to approve integrated land-use and transportation plans that make transit the primary means of serving future growth in travel demand.

The Canadian Water and Wastewater Association and Friends of the Earth Canada request that the federal government:

·        demonstrate fiscal accountability by requiring that soft path-like analyses be done prior to committing federal funds for water and wastewater infrastructure projects;

·        have fiscal policies that oppose the use of subsidies for infrastructure development, unless there are clear social or other equity reasons to support subsidies; and

·        use the full suite of policy tools to stimulate and enforce behavioural changes among all water-using sectors, with all federal buildings and operations mandated to assess, report on and implement water soft path strategies by 2012.

The Capital Unitarian Universalist Congregation requests that the federal government:

·        determine the amount of grants or subsidies based on an assessment of a corporation’s environmental and social impacts as well as its economic impacts;

·        re-evaluate the role of multinational corporations in society and ensure that the system of taxes they face reflects the true costs and benefits of them to Canada; and

·        change accounting rules to reflect the existence of negative environmental and social impacts, which would be taxed at a higher rate, or — alternatively — impose a carbon tax.

The Catholic Women’s League of Canada requests that the federal government:

·        address the issue of the lack of adequate affordable housing for low-income families, the disabled and seniors;

·        invest in literacy programs;

·        support an effective, cost-efficient national pharmacare program;

·        support national home care standards;

·        include palliative care as an integral part of the health care system;

·        offer debt relief to burdened developing countries; and

·        re-establish funding to MaterCare International.

The Cement Association of Canada requests that the federal government:

·        take measures to ensure that the principles of the Cabinet Directive on Streamlining Regulation are achieved and are applied in the development of the Regulatory Framework for Industrial Air Emissions.

The Certified General Accountants Association of Canada requests that the federal government:

·        appoint an independent panel of experts, including international specialists, to undertake a comprehensive review of Canada’s taxation policy;

·        on a priority basis, address the recommendations from the Expert Panel on Older Workers;

·        lead efforts to ensure that the labour mobility provisions of the Agreement on Internal Trade are fully complied with by 1 April 2009;

·        ensure the consistent application of tax legislation from coast-to-coast-to-coast;

·        reduce the regulatory burden on small and medium-sized businesses and entrepreneurs;

·        maintain balanced federal budgets;

·        reduce the federal debt;

·        control federal spending;

·        ensure “smart” regulation;

·        review federal program spending; and

·        remove all internal trade barriers.

Certified Management Accountants Canada requests that the federal government:

·        endow a scholarship program aimed specifically at attracting top students from around the world to study in Canada, coincident with enhancements to immigration policy designed to encourage gifted foreign students to remain in Canada following the completion of their studies;

·        support the acquisition of basic skills by adults currently in the labour force, including through investments in basic literacy and numeracy programs; and

·        accept the recommendations of the House of Commons Standing Committee on Public Safety and National Security and of the House of Commons Standing Committee on Industry, Science and Technology in respect of counterfeiting and piracy of intellectual property.

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The Child Care Advocacy Association of Canada requests that the federal government:

·        develop and enact legislation and supporting agreements with the provinces/territories that will define child care services as universally accessible and non-compulsory, contain corresponding service entitlement and standards, clearly establish goals, timelines, benchmarks and key system indicators for quality, affordability and accessibility as the child care system is built, and establish accountability mechanisms;

·        direct federal funding to provincially/territorially regulated child care services, with expansion in not-for-profit and public community-based services, government accountability for investments, and annual progress reports to Parliament, provincial/territorial legislatures and the public;

·        establish a funding schedule and implementation plan to achieve quality, universal child care services for children aged three to five years by 2011 and for all children by 2018; and

·        support parents in their efforts to balance work and family responsibilities, with expanded and enhanced maternity/paternity benefits and annual paid family responsibilities leave to be used at the discretion of the parent to care for sick family members or to attend medical, school and other appointments.

The Chronic Disease Prevention Alliance of Canada requests that the federal government:

·        continue to move forward with investments in health promotion and chronic disease as well as with tax support to encourage active transportation and child fitness;

·        make obesity and physical activity a priority for immediate action;

·        provide $1.5 million over five years for the Chronic Disease Prevention Alliance of Canada to facilitate ongoing alignment, coordination and implementation of the Pan-Canadian Chronic Disease Prevention Framework and Action Plan;

·        allocate 1% of federal health spending to physical activity and sport; and

·        allocate at least 7% of transportation-related infrastructure funds within the federal gas tax transfer program to the development and sustainability of infrastructure that promotes physical activity.

Citizens for Public Justice requests that the federal government:

·        implement a poverty-reduction strategy;

·        undertake a study to evaluate the impact of recent and proposed changes to the tax system in terms of raising adequate income to fund public infrastructure and services, reducing inequality in after-tax incomes, and achieving specific public policy objectives toward shared and sustainable prosperity; and

·        consider the development of a measure that would guarantee a basic income for all people.

The City of Courtenay requests that the federal government:

·        continue with long-term commitments to capital grant funding for infrastructure projects.

The City of Toronto requests that the federal government:

·        adopt the Big City Mayors’ Caucus proposal for a national transit strategy, with an annual $2 billion investment in transit, increased transit research and more integrated land-use planning;

·        establish a national housing strategy, including making the Affordable Housing Initiative and the Residential Rehabilitation Assistance Program permanent;

·        invest $90 million in the rehabilitation cost of Regent Park;

·        provide funding for the ongoing repair and maintenance of social housing;

·        commit to ongoing sustainable funding for social housing after debentures and mortgages expire;

·        make permanent the National Homelessness Initiative; and

·        provide permanent support for an early learning and child care system that would include flexible funding for capital infrastructure, subsidized spaces and operating expenses.

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The Coalition for Canadian Astronomy requests that the federal government:

·        make investments in order to support the priorities identified in the Long Range Plan for Astronomy and Astrophysics, and ensure that existing commitments in respect of astronomy are maintained; and

·        with the scientific community, develop a strategic approach to govern scientific investment, coupled with focused, coordinated planning within disciplines.

The Coalition of Child Care Advocates of British Columbia requests that the federal government:

·        develop a clear action plan for a publicly funded, pan-Canadian child care system, with adequate resources;

·        make the first installment on a four-year commitment to create a licenced child care space for every child aged 3 to 5 years, as the first phase in building a comprehensive system for children from birth to 12 years of age;

·        introduce standards that guarantee quality, universal, accessible, developmental and inclusive early learning and child care programs;

·        encourage the provinces/territories to move from the current user pay and subsidy system to publicly funded early learning and child care programs;

·        guarantee that new federal funding will be provided in addition to existing financial commitments, and will be allocated to the provinces/territories with the understanding that the funds will be used to increase and supplement, rather than replace, existing provincial/territorial spending;

·        agree that the expansion of early learning and child care programs will occur through public and/or not-for-profit delivery, with existing for-profit programs being grand-parented; and

·        ensure accountability to taxpayers by linking provincial/territorial funding to five-year plans for building a child care system that includes goals, objectives, timelines, targets, review and evaluation that has such specific service indicators as the number of quality spaces, reduced parental fees, and improved training and compensation for early childhood educators.

Community Foundations of Canada requests that the federal government:

·        enter into a partnership with community foundations to leverage financial resources of up to $150 million to encourage the health and fitness of Canada’s youth and children.

Conscience Canada requests that the federal government:

·        introduce a conscientious objector act to permit conscientious objectors to redirect taxes from military defence to non-violent security-building measures.

The Conseil national des cycles supérieurs, Fédération étudiante universitaire du Québec requests that the federal government:

·        separate post-secondary education from the Canada Social Transfer and create a distinct, dedicated transfer for post-secondary education;

·        increase transfers for higher education by $4.1 billion;

·        increase funding for the indirect costs of research program in order to fund 65% of baseline direct costs;

·        progressively increase funding to the Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council in order to meet the goal of 20-25% of total funding by the three federal granting councils by 2010-2011; and

·        cease its investments in the Canada Foundation for Innovation, and reallocate those funds to the federal granting councils.

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The Co-operative Housing Federation of Canada requests that the federal government:

·        renew for a five-year period, and expand, the Co-operative Development Initiative;

·        establish a new co-operative investment plan;

·        increase international development assistance to 0.44% of Gross National Product by 2010, and strengthen the role of co-operatives and other non-governmental organizations in its delivery;

·        invest in affordable housing to reduce core housing need and set long-term targets for reductions in core housing need; and

·        develop a five-year, $30 million program of loans and incentives to support energy-saving retrofits in housing co-operatives.

The Council of Canadians with Disabilities requests that the federal government:

·        work with the provinces/territories to provide support for the building of affordable, accessible housing;

·        work with Band Councils to ensure equal access to disability-related supports for First Nations peoples with disabilities living on reserves;

·        take on an expanded role in respect of income support for Canadians with disabilities, thereby making more resources at the provincial/territorial level available for re-investment in supports and services;

·        establish specific targets for Canadians with disabilities in the labour market agreements negotiated with the provinces/territories;

·        expand the Multilateral Framework Agreement on Labour Force Participation of People with Disabilities and the Opportunities Fund; and

·        create new initiatives to promote access, inclusion and full citizenship, including measures related to transportation, the United Nations Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities, accessible technology, an accessibility design centre, universal design principles regarding access, and disability community knowledge mobilization and knowledge transfer.

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The David Suzuki Foundation and the Living Oceans Society request that the federal government:

·        commit $600 million over the next five years to support the open, transparent and publicly accessible implementation of a comprehensive oceans strategy throughout all five large oceans management areas in Canada;

·        support the development and implementation of integrated ocean management plans in all five large oceans management areas that would include meaningful engagement of stakeholders and local communities, resolution of outstanding protocol agreements between the federal, provincial/territorial and First Nations governments, required staffing, research and analysis, and coordinated secretariat/planning offices for implementation of integrated oceans management; and

·        ensure that Canada can meet its national and international commitments under Canada’s Oceans Act, the Convention on Biological Diversity and Agenda 21 by implementing integrated oceans management.

Davies, Derwyn requests that the federal government:

·        ensure true competition in order to foster a realistic market economy;

·        ensure that banks fulfill their primary responsibility to Canadian society;

·        make full university funding a public responsibility, and eliminate corporate funding of universities and colleges; and

·        implement a guaranteed annual income as a basic right of citizenship.

The Direct Sellers Association requests that the federal government:

·        review existing social programs with a view to ensuring that they offer all individuals, including those starting their own businesses, the transitional relief needed to move from a position of dependence on social assistance to a position of independence in operating their own small business; and

·        ensure that, once a taxpayer’s earnings have surpassed the allowed level of transitional relief, social programs are amended by providing additional pro-rata relief through deducting 50% of additional earnings from Employment Insurance eligibility.

The Discovery Centre requests that the federal government:

·        establish a new federal program for Canada’s science centres that takes maximum advantage of an existing, well-established, community-based network.

Enbridge requests that the federal government:

·        expand the definition of low-impact electricity to include both renewable energy and clean fossil energy technologies that generate electricity without the combustion of fuels;

·        expand the list of technologies eligible under Canada’s ecoENERGY programs; and

·        consider a technology-neutral program that supports the adoption of alternative energy technologies through tiered production incentives based on the resulting clean air benefits and the specific technology’s commercial maturity.

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The Fédération des femmes du Québec, the Conseil d’intervention pour l’accès des femmes au travail and the Fédération des associations de familles monoparentales et recomposées du Québec request that the federal government :

·        give priority to measures to promote women’s equality, particularly for women who are victims of double discrimination;

·        in respect of foreign policy, reduce military spending and increase investments in development assistance programs, especially those that will help women and children;

·        enhance investments in integration programs, particularly for learning French, professional upgrading and recognition of credentials;

·        abolish restrictions that apply to immigrants under the live-in caregiver program;

·        make immigration criteria less stringent in order to ensure the eligibility of women from all social classes;

·        amend the Canada Health Act in order to prohibit waiting periods for health insurance coverage for people who move to Canada;

·        ensure full coverage of medical expenses on Aboriginal reserves;

·        implement measures to ensure that health care in the territories and in isolated Northern communities are comparable to those in the rest of the country;

·        fund shelters for women who are victims of violence as well as other services for women at the same level in Aboriginal and Inuit communities as exists in other communities in Canada;

·        implement additional programs to support the economic autonomy and equality rights of Aboriginal women;

·        implement additional programs for women with a functional limitation with a view to supporting their full integration into society, giving them the services and equipment they need, and protecting them against physical, mental, sexual and other forms of abuse;

·        implement proactive federal pay equity legislation;

·        ensure compliance with the Canadian Human Rights Act;

·        within the Women’s Program, provide funding to support the missions of organizations involved in women’s rights advocacy and in promoting equality between women and men;

·        re-open all Status of Women Canada regional offices;

·        reinstate the Court Challenges Program;

·        eliminate the provisions in the Employment Insurance program that discriminate against women, including the eligibility requirements defined in hours;

·        make improvements to the Employment Insurance program to ensure that those who are unemployed can maintain an acceptable standard of living;

·        reinstate the 2005 child care agreements;

·        improve the parental benefits in the Employment Insurance program;

·        improve the compassionate care benefits in the Employment Insurance program;

·        amend the Canada Labour Code and similar minimum employment standards in the federal public service in order to permit an employee to take parental leave for a maximum period of two years following the birth or adoption of a child, with no prior-service requirement;

·        allow 11 days of paid leave per family per year for family responsibilities in respect of children aged 1 to 17 years or close adult family members;

·        fund 50% of health care costs through an increase to the Canada Social Transfer;

·        in the context of the Canada Health Act, prohibit public funding of private clinics and hospitals but require the provinces/territories to provide all public services within a reasonable period of time;

·        ensure the existence of a Canadian prescription drug program;

·        extend care covered under the Canada Health Act to include personal care services at home as well as optometric and dental care;

·        in respect of the Canada Social Transfer, require that provincial/territorial social assistance programs cover all of the essential needs of recipients, in addition to any support paid for a child;

·        in respect of the Canada Social Transfer, fund at least 50% of the cost of social assistance programs;

·        increase post-secondary funding by $2.2 billion, including for expanded student financial assistance programs;

·        increase investments in social housing by $2 billion annually, in the form of affordable housing, housing co-operatives and housing units managed by not-for-profit organizations;

·        increase funding for legal aid; and

·        increase the federal minimum wage to $10.65 in 2008.

The Federation of Sisters of St. Joseph of Canada requests that the federal government:

·        use the tax and transfer system as a tool for creating strong community and healthy eco-systems with the guiding principles of: integrated community sustainability, with a comprehensive measure of progress; accountability to citizens, with rigorous annual review of the social and environmental impacts of tax reductions and exemptions on the capacity of governments to address social and environmental issues; and the use of federal tax revenues to benefit everyone, including national strategies in respect of poverty and climate change, a target of 0.7% of Gross National Product allocated to official development assistance, and justice issues of First Nations concerns on a level commensurate with the Kelowna Accord.

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First Call: BC Child and Youth Advocacy Coalition requests that the federal government:

·        establish a poverty-reduction strategy with the target of reducing child poverty by 25% by 2012 and by 50% by 2017;

·        increase the federal minimum wage to at least $10 per hour in 2005 dollars, increase it annually by at least the annual increase in the cost of living, and advocate that the provinces/territories take similar actions;

·        increase federal funding for the construction and operation of 25,000 new social housing units in each of the next five years;

·        increase federal funding for a pan-Canadian system of regulated community-based child care for children less than 12 years of age, with funding such that — along with provincial/territorial matching funds — at least 80% of the cost of child care will be publicly funded and 20% or less will be based on parental fees or parental fundraising; and

·        make post-secondary education affordable for all who qualify by requiring a freeze on tuition fees as a condition of additional federal funding to post- secondary institutions.

Garrison, Randall requests that the federal government:

·        end the annual subsidies provided to the oil and gas sector;

·        reduce infrastructure spending for new roads and highway infrastructure, and reallocate the funds to spending on rail and on mass transit;

·        develop a strategy to move goods and people from the roads to rail;

·        create incentives to help reduce our individual and collective environmental footprint;

·        support transition programs to help ensure that workers do not pay, with their jobs, for the transition to a green future;

·        invest in preventative medicine and home care services, as well as in new national health care programs;

·        renew the national commitment to pubic education on the HIV/AIDS pandemic and other preventative health programs;

·        set the minimum wage above the poverty level;

·        ensure that federal contributions to provincial/territorial social assistance programs are used to raise benefit levels;

·        restore a federal housing program to provide both low-interest mortgages for the construction of cooperative housing and subsidies for assisted-living projects operated by the not-for-profit sector;

·        reduce or eliminate post-secondary tuition fees;

·        relieve the debt burden of recent post-secondary education graduates;

·        meet the commitments to First Nations contained in the Kelowna Accord;

·        make investments in order to meet the challenges of global warming;

·        exercise leadership in respect of global warming;

·        exercise leadership in closing the prosperity gap;

·        exercise leadership internationally by helping to free the world of conflict and violence;

·        withdraw Canadian Forces personnel from Afghanistan, and return to a focus on peacekeeping and international development;

·        make investments in order to ensure that Canadians can lead healthy lives in healthy communities;

·        continue to provide the Canadian Forces with the skills and equipment needed to return to the traditional role of international peacekeeping; and

·        help to ensure a more stable and peaceful world.

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Gass, Joe and David request that the federal government:

·        make all procurement personnel accountable and responsible for every expenditure of tax dollars;

·        introduce a new, zero-tolerance law on accountability, with whistleblower protection and rewards to whistleblowers in the event of successful prosecutions;

·        give a bonus to any department with personnel that has a budget surplus;

·        introduce legislation to make it mandatory for all procurement personnel in all departments, including boards and commissions, to call for tenders on all purchases exceeding $1,000;

·        reduce or limit the amount that government and business can spend on entertainment and advertising;

·        reduce transfer payments to those provinces/territories that do not balance their budget;

·        enact the conclusions reached by the Auditor General of Canada, with a zero-tolerance and prosecutorial approach;

·        introduce price controls on oil and gas; and

·        not permit cost overruns for any reason.

The Graduate Students’ Association — University of Alberta requests that the federal government:

·        ensure that the number of scholarships offered by the Natural Sciences and Engineering Research Council, the Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council and the Canadian Institutes of Health Research increases at a rate at least equal to the rate of growth in graduate enrolment, and provide the granting councils with the additional funding needed to achieve this objective;

·        continue support for the Canada Graduate Scholarship program and the federal granting councils;

·        improve incentives for Canadians to pursue graduate studies, including through interest-free student status for graduate students for six months following graduation; and

·        commit to ensuring that, in all disciplines, the number of federal scholarships awarded in any given year exceeds 10% of the total graduate enrolment in that discipline.

The Greater Vancouver Transportation Authority requests that the federal government:

·        invest in elements of, and activities related to, the Pacific Gateway Strategy.

The Green Budget Coalition requests that the federal government:

·        take action to conserve Canada’s oceans and lands by implementing existing strategies, including those with a focus on marine protected areas, integrated oceans management plans, national parks, national wildlife areas, migratory bird sanctuaries, and ecological goods and services on agricultural lands;

·        fund a long-term, comprehensive sustainability plan to restore, protect and enhance the Great Lakes and St. Lawrence Region, including a focus on a shared, basin-wide vision, water and wastewater infrastructure, contamination, and invasive and endangered species;

·        further level the playing field in respect of resource sustainability;

·        implement a comprehensive strategy for renewable energy and energy efficiency; and

·        integrate environmental values into fiscal policy.

The Halifax Chamber of Commerce requests that the federal government:

·        continue to adhere to a clear federal debt management and debt reduction plan, and pay attention to program spending;

·        make well-managed and strategically appropriate investments in such areas as health care and health promotion, education and infrastructure;

·        if not needed to cushion against unpredictable events, continue to allocate the contingency fund to debt reduction;

·        reduce the federal debt-to-GDP ratio to a level below 25% by 2013;

·        commit the reserve for economic prudence to federal debt reduction;

·        allocate any unanticipated budgetary surplus to federal debt reduction;

·        ensure that program spending increases do not exceed the rates of growth in population and inflation;

·        where possible, reallocate existing program spending to support new program spending; and

·        consider the recommendations of the Auditor General of Canada in her 2006 report card on the Expenditure Management System, including those related to the systematic review of ongoing programs as well as the collection and use of comprehensive information on program costs and performance to enhance the Treasury Board’s spending oversight role.

The Halifax Regional Municipality requests that the federal government:

·        ensure long-term infrastructure funding and commit to eliminating the municipal infrastructure deficit;

·        provide enabling funding to support projects designed to assist in reducing greenhouse gas emissions and in meeting federal, provincial/territorial and municipal environmental goals and mandates;

·        support additional law enforcement officers for municipal police agencies;

·        share revenues with cities that grow with the economy; and

·        implement a permanent national transit strategy.

The Hamilton Roundtable for Poverty Reduction requests that the federal government:

·        strike a task force, with timelines, to examine how other countries achieve relatively superior results in respect of child poverty and early childhood development.

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The Health Charities Coalition of Canada requests that the federal government:

·        include national health charities in the federal indirect costs of research program.

The Heart and Stroke Foundation of Canada requests that the federal government:

·        cover the indirect costs of research associated with the research undertaken by health charities.

The Heritage Canada Foundation requests that the federal government:

·        promote private-public partnerships for historic places by providing seed-funding for a national heritage conservation endowment fund.

Hoffmann-La Roche Limited requests that the federal government:

·        adopt the preventative use of antiviral medications (or prophylactic use) as a policy within its pandemic plan; and

·        advise corporations to develop their own pandemic preparedness plans.

Holmen, Denise requests that the federal government:

·        use tax revenues to encourage sustainable development;

·        increase funds allocated to a national, affordable housing program;

·        cancel the debt of low-income countries; and

·        increase development assistance to low-income countries.

Imagine Canada requests that the federal government:

·        implement a national charities strategy incorporating tax measures that stimulate private donations and improve access to financing, as well as such complementary measures as grants and contributions;

·        ensure that the proposed national charities strategy has components that include a sustained commitment to the implementation of the recommendations of the Independent Blue Ribbon Panel on Grant and Contribution Programs, and long-term funding to support the ongoing collection and dissemination of mission-critical information through the Canada Survey on Giving, Volunteering and Participation and the Satellite Accounts, tax measures to encourage private donations, and the establishment of a new blue ribbon panel to explore innovative financial mechanisms to support the charitable/not-for-profit sector that go beyond the current tax measures;

·        implement reforms to the system of federal grants and contributions; and

·        ensure the continued availability of Statistics Canada data to track giving, volunteering and participation by Canadians as well as the economic impact of the community not-for-profit sector.

The Independent Media Arts Alliance requests that the federal government:

·        ensure that cultural funding becomes statutory spending;

·        provide increased and sustained support to the arts and culture sector;

·        implement legislation that would respond to the need for social benefits for artists;

·        develop a national strategy for arts and culture;

·        increase funding to the Canada Council for the Arts by $100 million annually;

·        guarantee mortgages for not-for-profit cultural organizations;

·        increase funds for capital programs for purchasing buildings as permanent cultural spaces; and

·        increase funding for the preservation, archiving, cataloguing and collection maintenance of audiovisual and media art works, specifically through increased support to the Canadian Audio Visual Preservation Trust, the Canada Council for the Arts, and the National Library and Archives of Canada.

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The International Air Transport Association requests that the federal government:

·        revisit its airport rent policy as a whole and recognize airports as strategic economic assets.

The Investment Funds Institute of Canada requests that the federal government:

·        appoint a special task force to examine issues and identify possible solutions in respect of secure retirement.

The Juvenile Diabetes Research Foundation requests that the federal government:

·        partner with the Juvenile Diabetes Research Foundation for a ten-year period in order to accelerate juvenile diabetes research, and commit $125 million over the first five years, renewable for the second five years.

KAIROS: Canadian Ecumenical Justice Initiatives requests that the federal government:

·        launch a public commission on fair taxation, including consideration of such ideas as taxing all forms of income equally, a graduated consumption tax, a steeper gradation of income tax rates across income levels, and mandatory filing and paying of taxes for Canadian citizens living abroad;

·        recognize that “a deal is a deal,” whether referring to treaties signed with First Nations or the Kelowna Accord;

·        implement the recommendations of the report by the Standing Senate Committee on Aboriginal Peoples, Sharing Canada’s Prosperity — A Hand Up, Not a Handout, on specific claims which includes creating, within two years, an independent body for land-claim settlement, increasing funding for settlements, and adopting new guiding principles which recognize that specific claims have moral, human rights, financial, economic, political and legal dimensions;

·        test, on a pilot-project basis, new approaches to pre-budget consultations that increase deliberation, common ground building, and the participation of marginalized and excluded groups;

·        cancel, without imposing policy conditions, 100% of the debt of low-income countries;

·        develop a plan for raising Canada’s official development assistance to 0.7% of Gross National Product by 2015;

·        in consultation with Canadians and the provincial/territorial governments, implement a poverty-reduction plan with targets and timelines;

·        develop a national affordable housing strategy with long-term funding and the creation of at least 20,000 affordable units per year;

·        restore and increase sustained federal funding to the provinces/territories in order to improve and expand child care services based on the principles of quality, inclusion and affordability;

·        remove the 2% cap on annual increases to funding for First Nations programs;

·        develop a new, fair, sustainable system of fiscal transfers and an independent process for determining funding levels that is based on Aboriginal nationhood, Aboriginal and treaty rights, and respect for Aboriginal jurisdiction; and

·        reassess subsidies for fossil fuel industries in light of greenhouse gas reduction goals with a view to making energy conservation, energy efficiency and the development of renewable alternatives the first priority.

MacKinnon, Gordon E. requests that the federal government:

·        provide businesses with incentives to enhance productivity;

·        provide incentives to promote investment in critical areas supporting public policy;

·        provide incentives for small businesses to address structural inequities; and

·        provide direct funding for major urban centres, including capital and operational funding for transit to enhance service levels and to improve recreational opportunities.

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Magazines Canada requests that the federal government:

·        adopt the goal of Canada’s magazine publishing sector to ensure that at least 50% of the magazines sold in Canada are Canadian-content publications, and partner with the sector to achieve this objective through stable and strategic investments in policy and program initiatives;

·        continue to ensure that adequate budgets are available for the Publications Assistance Program (PAP) and the Canada Magazine Fund in order to achieve the readership objective;

·        either direct Canada Post to continue supporting the PAP or replace Canada Post’s existing contribution to the PAP with funding from the Department of Canadian Heritage; and

·        carefully review the role of Canada Post in magazine delivery in the future.

The Manitoba Child Care Association requests that the federal government:

·        by 2020, allocate 1% of Gross Domestic Product for early learning and child care services, with funds that are sustainable, increased annually, and targeted to the development of high-quality early learning and child care services;

·        work with the provinces/territories to create a legislated, overarching early learning and child care agreement for a national child care system, including equitable funding for Aboriginal child care services;

·        identify terms, criteria and conditions for federal funds in order to ensure that the provinces/territories invest only in not-for-profit, regulated services that are inclusive and provide high-quality care, early learning and family support;

·        ensure that funds are used to provide early learning and child care services for children from birth to age 12;

·        tighten accountability requirements and require that all child care funds be invested in early learning and child care programs by the provinces/territories, with federal funds used to supplement, not replace, provincial/territorial spending on early learning and child care;

·        ensure that the Child Care Spaces Initiative includes funds to create real, sustainable spaces that are regulated, inclusive, accessible, community-based and not-for-profit;

·        require the provincial/territorial governments to refine internal mechanisms to ensure compliance, to develop timetables and benchmarks, and provide regular reporting of outcomes to the public;

·        work with the provinces/territories to promote family-friendly workplaces; and

·        not consider income support programs, such as the Universal Child Care Benefit or a tax credit, to be a substitute for a national early learning and child care system.

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The Manitoba Museum requests that the federal government:

·        review and revitalize the Museums Assistance Program, with a focus on providing community museums with the necessary support to develop and implement fundraising initiatives;

·        establish a federal program for Canada’s science centres, with an investment of $200 million over five years;

·        provide incentives to create endowments and foundations, and develop incentives to attract donations to charities, endowments and foundations; and

·        with the provincial/territorial and municipal governments, as well as with the museum sector, continue to develop and conclude a new museum policy.

The Montmagny RCM requests that the federal government:

·        support the development of cellular networks in the Montmagny RCM.

The Mood Disorders Society of Canada requests that the federal government:

·        expand the funding of core activities of mental health non-governmental organizations through programs under the Office of Disabilities, Human Resources and Social Development Canada;

·        provide $5 million annually for a national anti-stigma campaign, and $6 million annually for the creation of a knowledge/education centre;

·        provide, as part of the Mental Health Transition Fund and administered by the Canadian Mental Health Commission, $2.5 million annually to the provinces/territories for peer support and self-help initiatives; and

·        commit an additional $25 million annually for research into the clinical, health services and population health aspects of mental health, mental illness and addiction, with these funds administered by the Canadian Institutes of Health Research through the Institute of Neurosciences, Mental Health and Addiction under the guidance of a multi-stakeholder board in consultation with the Canadian Mental Health Commission.

The Mouvement pour les arts et les lettres requests that the federal government:

·        increase the budget of the Canada Council for the Arts to $300 million annually.

The Multiple Sclerosis Society of Canada requests that the federal government:

·        establish a task force to study the issue of income support for people with episodic and/or permanent disabilities, with opportunities for wide consultation;

·        amend the Canada Labour Code to grant leave to family caregivers who must leave work for a period of time in order to care for a family member;

·        pursue measures to support the financial needs of family caregivers of people who are severely disabled;

·        increase its investment in the Canadian Institutes of Health Research by providing stable, multi-year funding; and

·        include health charities in the indirect costs of research program.

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The National Aboriginal Achievement Foundation requests that the federal government:

·        increase funding for the National Aboriginal Achievement Foundation;

·        use the capabilities of the National Aboriginal Achievement Foundation in respect of post-secondary education and training for First Nations, Métis and Inuit youth; and

·        use the National Aboriginal Achievement Foundation to ensure that every First Nations, Inuit and Métis student who is accepted for post-secondary studies has the financial ability to attend school.

The National Anti-Poverty Organization requests that the federal government:

·        create and implement a national poverty-reduction strategy; and

·        invest in the development of a framework for a universal guaranteed adequate income program.

The National Association of Friendship Centres requests that the federal government:

·        increase funding of the Aboriginal Friendship Centre Program to $21,501,231;

·        develop an action plan for Aboriginal women, based on the 2007 National Aboriginal Women’s Summit, that addresses legislation, policy, programs and services and that clarifies federal and provincial/territorial responsibilities;

·        ensure that gender-specific services are readily available and accessible regardless of residency;

·        provide Friendship Centres with a commitment to capacity building in key areas;

·        develop a poverty strategy that includes literacy, lifelong learning, income and employment;

·        significantly increase employment and training funds while indexing further investments;

·        ensure that employment and training investments target the increasingly urban Aboriginal demographic; and

·        formally recognize the “Friendship Centre Advantage” through the development of a bilateral accord.

The National Association of Friendship Centres — Aboriginal Youth Council requests that the federal government:

·        allocate about $11.3 million over five years to support five areas of activity: support youth structures; youth leadership development; education/volunteerism; a national youth foundation; and communication.

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The National Association of Indigenous Institutes of Higher Learning requests that the federal government:

·        with the provincial/territorial governments, resolve the question of which level of government has primary responsibility for First Nations-controlled post-secondary institutions;

·        provide formal recognition to Indigenous institutions by recognizing their right to grant degrees, diplomas and certificates;

·        provide secure operating grants that are comparable to the funding available to mainstream post-secondary institutions;

·        provide secure funding for program development and delivery;

·        provide access to the national post-secondary infrastructure fund and other special grants available to mainstream institutions; and

·        ensure that First Nations-controlled institutions have access to all grants and special funding available to mainstream colleges and universities, including research grants and research chairs.

The National Council of Women of Canada requests that the federal government:

·        ensure improved access and reduced wait times within the context of a single-tiered health system available to all Canadians;

·        reinstate the early learning and child care agreements;

·        maintain the gun registry;

·        increase support for shelters, transitional housing, counselling services and adequate incomes;

·        ensure the existence of a designated social transfer fund for social services as well as for health and post-secondary education;

·        rethink the federal climate change plan, fund stronger measures, and inform the public about the reality of the threats and the need to take individual action;

·        replace the existing voluntary federal pay equity scheme with comprehensive and proactive legislation;

·        implement measures to recognize the value of unpaid work to the economy in national accounting statistics;

·        require employers to provide pro-rated benefits (medical, dental, pension) to all part-time employees;

·        review federal-provincial/territorial financial arrangements with a view to ensuring that vital services are available throughout Canada; and

·        create and fund an independent external oversight mechanism for federal prisons for women.

The Native Women’s Association of Canada requests the federal government:

·        ensure that Aboriginal women have ongoing and improved access to programs and services at a level that is comparable to those enjoyed by other Canadians;

·        recognize the dual First Nations or Métis or Inuit and Canadian citizenship of Aboriginal women, and ensure the portability of their rights;

·        implement culturally relevant gender-based analysis;

·        ensure that research on, and evaluation of, the efficiency and effectiveness of programs and services address the amelioration of gaps specific to Aboriginal women;

·        through targeted research and evaluation initiatives, address the significant knowledge gaps in understanding the effectiveness and accessibility of services and supports for Aboriginal women in urban areas; and

·        ensure that the provision of public goods is not terminated until an impact analysis of the proposed action is completed, including consultation with the individuals who would be affected by the proposed change, determination of how affected individuals would meet their needs in the absence of the affected program or service, and an analysis of the potential costs of new gaps in wellness, health or other social indicators that would occur as a result of the planned termination.

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The New Brunswick Non-profit Housing Association requests that the federal government:

·        maintain the current level of funding to sustain the existing operating agreements with not-for-profit housing corporations across Canada after these agreements expire, with funding reinvested in additional affordable housing and to ensure the continued viability of the existing housing stock;

·        make direct lending through the Canada Mortgage and Housing Corporation available to not-for-profit corporations for affordable housing development; and

·        ensure that the Urban Aboriginal Strategy meets the socio-economic needs of Aboriginal peoples.

The North End Community Health Centre requests that the federal government:

·        lead the establishment of a poverty-reduction strategy within the current tax system, with long-term plans, clear goals, and indicators and targets so that governments and leaders can be held accountable;

·        with the provinces/territories, build a better accountability mechanism in respect of the Canada Social Transfer;

·        reinstate the federal minimum wage at $10 per hour and index it to inflation;

·        work with the provinces/territories to phase in a program that would allow  all children to access quality early learning and child care from birth to age 12 based on the shared principles of quality, universality, accessibility and developmental programming;

·        with the provincial/territorial governments, work in good faith to ensure that the needs of all Aboriginal peoples are effectively met and sufficiently resourced;

·        work in concert with the provincial/territorial governments and communities to ensure the construction of 25,000 affordable housing units annually over the next five years;

·        allocate multi-year funding for a national housing and homelessness strategy; and

·        increase need-based grants for students.

The Nova Scotia Association of Social Workers requests that the federal government:

·        eliminate poverty as a top priority, with poverty reduction as an interim step; and

·        understand poverty in its broadest sense of exclusion from the prosperity experienced by most Canadians, and design poverty-reduction and poverty-elimination strategies that create an inclusive society, with a focus on affordable social housing, universal quality early childhood education and care, and publicly funded health care with coverage for medications and devices.

The Nova Scotia Federation of Labour requests that the federal government:

·        avoid the privatization of any public services;

·        allocate funds from the surplus in the Employment Insurance fund to support training and skills upgrading;

·        reduce the growing gap between the rich and the poor;

·        support publicly funded, publicly delivered services accessible to all Canadians; and

·        ensure that the provinces/territories have the resources needed to maintain equal and fair infrastructure and services.

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The Nova Scotia Government & General Employees Union requests that the federal government:

·        honour the Atlantic Accord;

·        reverse the September 2006 changes to the funding of such programs, entities and measures as the Court Challenges Program, Status of Women Canada, literacy and adult learning programs, the Canada Volunteerism Initiative, the Canadian Labour and Business Centre, and the Law Commission of Canada;

·        take a leadership role in developing wait-time solutions in the public health care system instead of pursuing care guarantees, ensuring compliance with and enforcement of the Canada Health Act, developing a national pharmaceutical strategy, addressing health human resources issues, and meeting Aboriginal health and northern needs;

·        develop a national post-secondary education act, with national objectives, standards and mechanisms for federal cost-sharing;

·        establish a national department of education to coordinate better the provision of post-secondary education and to ensure that all Canadians have a right to post-secondary education;

·        establish a separate, dedicated funding transfer to the provinces/territories for post-secondary education;

·        commit to a per-student allocation of funding for post-secondary education;

·        with the provinces/territories, adopt an immediate goal of reducing tuition fees, with the longer term goal of eliminating tuition fees altogether, and work to address other barriers to the educational development of Canadians; and

·        with the provinces/territories, work to legislate worker training rights in labour laws.

The Nunavut Association of Municipalities requests that the federal government:

·        hold Northern resource revenues in escrow pending the completion of resource revenue-sharing agreements with the territories;

·        in accordance with the report of the Expert Panel on Territorial Formula Financing, establish a forum to bring together the Government of Nunavut, the Government of Canada, Inuit leaders, and a range of organizations, groups, and agencies to address the inter-related deficits in Nunavut; and

·        share resource revenues with local governments in accordance with the principles in the 2006 federal budget.

The Ontario Coalition for Better Child Care requests that the federal government:

·        work with the provinces/territories to develop a clear action plan, with adequate resources and timelines to build an accountable, publicly funded, pan-Canadian child care system;

·        make the first installment on a four-year commitment to create a licensed child care space for every child 3 to 5 years of age in Canada as the first phase in building a comprehensive early learning and child care system for all children from birth to age 12; and

·        establish clear accountability measures between it and the provincial/territorial governments, including targets and monitoring processes in respect of specific service indicators, such as the number of quality spaces, reduced parental fees, and improved compensation and training for early childhood educators.

The Ontario Council of Agencies Serving Immigrants requests that the federal government:

·        develop a strategy to end poverty; and

·        increase the minimum wage.

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The Ontario Municipal Social Services Association requests that the federal government:

·        increase investments in social infrastructure, including in respect of economic security, early learning and child care, and affordable housing and homelessness prevention;

·        assume a renewed role in social policy formulation, where jurisdiction permits, and establish targeted funding envelopes to assist in the delivery of human services;

·        create a coherent, national approach to providing adequate social assistance rates;

·        ensure the existence of a national minimum wage;

·        improve and expand employment supports and training;

·        create a national early learning and child care policy framework and return to multi-year comprehensive funding across Canada; and

·        establish a national housing strategy, with ongoing federal funding as well as nation-wide standards and benchmarks for the provision of affordable and social housing, emergency shelter services and homelessness prevention strategies.

Orchestras Canada (on behalf of Symphony Nova Scotia, Orchestra London Canada and the Calgary Philharmonic Society) requests that the federal government:

·        renew the programs funded through the cultural spending package originally entitled Tomorrow Starts Today;

·        allocate an additional $25 million to the Canada Council for the Arts;

·        continue support for the endowment incentives component of the Canadian Arts and Heritage Sustainability Program and for international cultural exchange; and

·        develop a coherent national charities strategy which would incorporate tax and complementary measures that stimulate private donations, improve access to financing, and implement reforms to the federal system of grants and contributions.

Oxfam Canada requests that the federal government:

·        increase by 15% the level of funding for overseas development assistance, with a view to reaching the international standard of 0.7% of Gross National Product;

·        invest in Canada’s diplomatic capacity to support a strong and effective role at the United Nations, in regional diplomacy and in peacekeeping; and

·        increase investments in order to reduce poverty in Canada.

Partners for Rural Family Support requests that the federal government:

·        contribute to the well-being of, and commit funds to help, families in rural Saskatchewan; and

·        ensure consistent, long-term funding for the Partners for Rural Family Support.

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The Partnership Group for Science and Engineering requests that the federal government:

·        expand the federal indirect costs of research program to include support for university research from federally funded foundations;

·        recognize venture capital investment for expansion-stage financing;

·        increase incentives to attract and retain the best scientists and engineers, including through “starter” grants for new researchers;

·        assume the interest cost of student loans for graduate students who remain in Canada following graduation;

·        encourage greater uptake of industrial visiting fellowships and other researcher exchanges between sectors;

·        establish an international opportunities fund;

·        increase support for research infrastructure in federal laboratories and for the indirect costs of research; and

·        support strategic international partnerships and access to international scientific programs and data.

Payne, Cathy requests that the federal government:

·        increase funding to fight child pornography, in particular through the allocation of greater funds for child pornography police officers.

The Pembina Institute requests that the federal government:

·        use fiscal policy tools to ensure that resource prices reflect their true cost of extraction, production, use and disposal; and

·        continue to eliminate support to the oil and gas, nuclear and mining sectors.

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The Poverty Reduction Coalition requests that the federal government:

·        review tax and spending programs through a filter that ultimately improves the well-being of all Canadians;

·        provide extra support to those who are living in poverty in Canada;

·        consider an increase in the federal minimum wage; and

·        permit Real Estate Investment Trusts and Real Estate Investment Corporations to structure ethical fund equity investments in affordable housing.

The Prairie Women’s Health Centre of Excellence requests that the federal government:

·        implement Canada’s commitment to gender-based analysis at all levels of policy and program development;

·        recognize the ways in which income and gender affect health and understand how the concepts of health vary in communities and among Aboriginal peoples;

·        recognize women’s poverty as a serious issue and address children’s poverty as a common outcome of women’s poverty;

·        invest in child care in a substantive way;

·        provide parents with the means to commit to further education and labour force participation;

·        ensure that funds allocated to housing become new social housing units for those with low income, and that there are sufficient funds to maintain and operate those units when they are built;

·        reinstate funding for community resource centres; and

·        in the formulation of policy, use consultation and qualitative research in addition to quantitative measures.

The Professional Association of Canadian Theatres requests that the federal government:

·        increase funding to the Canada Council for the Arts by $100 million over two years;

·        make funding for the Tomorrow Starts Today initiative part of the permanent base budget of the Department of Canadian Heritage;

·        restore the $12 million that was eliminated from the Public Diplomacy Program of the Department of Foreign Affairs and International Trade; and

·        implement a long-term increase in the Arts Promotion budget.

The Professional Institute of the Public Service of Canada requests that the federal government:

·        increase long-term funding for the public service of Canada;

·        stop the sale of federal properties;

·        invest in government science;

·        end discussions about federal program cutbacks and program elimination;

·        halt the sale of public buildings and the transfer of federal laboratories until such time as value for money and benefit to all Canadians is proven for the full 25-year term;

·        ensure that the sale of any building is open and transparent;

·        allocate multi-year funding for federal scientists, regulators and researchers;

·        replace co-funding formulae for funding research activities with full funding of projects;

·        improve scientific research infrastructure across Canada;

·        allow collaborations to be funded and fostered across federal departments and agencies as well as internationally; and

·        increase the critical mass of researchers to work on crucial issues for Canadians.

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The Public Service Alliance of Canada (including the Calgary and District Labour Council and the Northern Regional Council) requests that the federal government:

·        invest in such priorities as a national, publicly funded pharmacare program, child care, Aboriginal peoples and literacy;

·        increase the federal minimum wage to $10 per hour; and

·        in respect of the North, invest in housing.

The Purchasing Management Association of Canada requests that the federal government:

·        allocate adequate resources to the Canada Border Services Agency, the Royal Canadian Mounted Police, the Department of Justice, and Health Canada to improve Canada’s ability to counter the negative economic as well as human health and safety consequences flowing from counterfeit and pirated goods and intellectual property.

The Quebec Federation of University Students requests that the federal government:

·        play a predominant role in the funding and development of the university system in Canada;

·        immediately increase federal transfers for post-secondary education by $4.9 billion;

·        ensure that federal transfers for post-secondary education are unconditional;

·        split the Canada Social Transfer in order to create a transfer dedicated to post-secondary education;

·        transfer financial compensation to those provinces/territories that have tuition fees below the Canadian average for investment in post-secondary education; and

·        abolish the Registered Education Savings Plan, the Canada Education Savings Grant and the Canada Learning Bonds, and allocate the funds to the Canada Student Loans Program for a national system of bursaries granted on the basis of need.

The Railway Association of Canada requests that the federal government:

·        continue to engage investment partnerships through the Building Canada Fund with the provincial/territorial governments and short-line railways; and

·        establish a rail technology development fund.

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The Registered Nurses’ Association of Ontario requests that the federal government:

·        immediately begin a public consultation process to develop and implement an anti-poverty strategy, which should include increasing the Canada Child Tax Benefit, transfers to the provinces/territories for early learning and child care, spending on social housing and the minimum wage to $10 per hour;

·        commit to meeting Canada’s obligations under the Kyoto Protocol, and develop a package of funded climate change programs and regulation that will ensure that Canada meets all Kyoto obligations on schedule;

·        enforce the Canada Health Act and attach firm conditions to federal health transfers; and

·        develop a national, publicly funded and controlled pharmacare program covering essential drugs, with the government funding 25% of the public costs of drugs.

The Red River College of Applied Arts, Science and Technology requests that the federal government:

·        provide incentives to individuals who are starting or growing small and medium-sized enterprises; and

·        continue to support and enhance college involvement in applied research, including through the College and Community Innovation program.

The Regroupement économique et social du Sud-Ouest requests that the federal government:

·        make the Canada Post site owned by Canada Lands Corporation eligible for federal programs for the decontamination of soils; and

·        invest the resources required for the restoration of the Lachine Canal and for its development in respect of tourism and culture.

Research Canada: An Alliance for Health Discovery requests that the federal government:

·        continue to strengthen the knowledge base through multi-year, predictable and balanced investments in the federal granting councils;

·        implement a funding formula that harmonizes health research funding across the research spectrum of ideas, human capital and infrastructure in order to achieve a robust return on the investment and enhance value for money; and

·        build health research infrastructure by continuing to strengthen investments in the Canada Foundation for Innovation.

Réseau SOLIDARITÉ Itinérance du Québec requests that the federal government:

·        extend its investments in respect of homelessness beyond 2009 (for at least five years) and increase amounts allocated to this area of spending; and

·        re-establish a national housing program in order to build or convert 8,000 social housing units in Quebec.

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RESULTS Canada requests that the federal government:

·        ensure that Canada meets its commitments and obligations in respect of global poverty reduction;

·        make a commitment and develop a timetable for increasing international aid to 0.7% of Gross National Product, with an initial commitment of $425 million;

·        increase support for microcredit and, at a minimum, reinstate funding for microcredit to the 2000 level of $78 million annually, with a significant portion of support targeted to those who make less than $1 a day;

·        use a position of leadership at the World Bank to call on it to, at a minimum, double the resources that the Bank commits to microcredit;

·        increase funding for HIV/AIDS, malaria and tuberculosis, which should include $60 million for the Global Fund to Fight HIV/AIDS, TB and Malaria, $100 million to address the tuberculosis emergency in Africa and to call for leadership from the World Bank on tuberculosis, and $100 million targeted to bed-net distribution and proven drug therapies in respect of malaria prevention and control; and

·        increase funding for education, particularly for the Fast Track Initiative and for the Abolition of School Fees.

The Retail Council of Canada requests that the federal government:

·        implement the changes needed to ensure that cabotage laws are, at a minimum, equal to American regulations.

The Road & Infrastructure Program of Canada requests that the federal government:

·        establish a new, separate fund for water and wastewater infrastructure.

The Saskatchewan Association of Rural Municipalities requests that the federal government:

·        introduce a new and expanded rural roads program to replace the expired Prairie Grain Roads Program; and

·        increase infrastructure funding for rural and remote areas of Canada.

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Science Enterprise Algoma requests that the federal government:

·        create a not-for-profit research institution, to be governed by the federal and provincial/territorial governments as well as academic and private sector board members, that would add value to the implementation of an invasive alien species strategy and would undertake research, coordinate and consolidate knowledge, create infrastructure, and provide training to support federal, provincial/territorial and municipal governments.

The Social Planning Council of Winnipeg requests that the federal government:

·        reinstate the federal minimum wage at $10 per hour, indexed to growth in average hourly earnings;

·        restore the Employment Insurance program to its role of preventing poverty among Canadian workers facing a precarious labour market;

·        restore financing for the Canada Social Transfer to indexed 1995 levels, and index it to the inflation rate;

·        develop goals, objectives and standards for the Canada Social Transfer; and

·        commit multi-year funding for a national housing strategy that would involve the creation of 25,000 affordable housing units annually for five years.

The Society of Trust and Estate Practitioners requests that the federal government:

·        make tax policy decisions that are guided by the principles of equity, efficiency, economic growth and ease of administration;

·        ensure that personal income tax rates are competitive;

·        develop tax policies and rates that enhance Canada’s international competitiveness;

·        recognize that there is no compelling reason for Canada’s tax policies or tax system to parallel those of other countries and not be afraid to maintain or introduce unique features, provided they promote efficiency and growth;

·        prepare a green paper for public discussion and debate on the development of user fees and on the desirable overall tax mix;

·        ensure that the tax base is as broad as possible, and the rates correspondingly low;

·        continue to develop tax policy that promotes economic activity; and

·        when fundamental changes in the direction of tax policy are proposed, release a green or a white paper for public consultation and debate regarding corporate and individuals taxes.

SpeciaLink: The National Centre for Child Care Inclusion requests that the federal government:

·        allocate funding for a comprehensive federal/provincial/territorial government agreement with effective monitoring and public accountability to advance the full inclusion of children with disabilities and to address child poverty;

·        ensure that entitlement and access to disability-related supports for children are not means-tested against household income;

·        develop and fund policies and programs that would support families in their caregiving role and in the paid labour force;

·        develop a clear action plan with adequate resources to move significantly forward in building a publicly funded, pan-Canadian inclusive child care system, including an initial installment on a four-year commitment to create a licensed child care space for every child aged 3 to 5 years as a first step towards a comprehensive and inclusive system for Canadian children from birth to 12 years of age;

·        launch a specific child care human resource and training strategy to support the inclusion of children with special needs; and

·        make inclusion goal benchmarks a priority in allocating funding for facilities development and renovation.

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The Sport Matters Group requests that the federal government:

·        make an initial investment of $30 million immediately in order to implement Canada’s Summer Sport Plan (Road to Excellence) and to complete the development phase of the private-public partnership called Podium Canada;

·        establish a blue ribbon panel of public, private, philanthropic and sport leaders to further the development of a new economics for sport in Canada;

·        implement measures which further the development of a new economics for sport in Canada; and

·        designate sport and recreation infrastructure funds to leverage provincial/territorial, municipal and corporate partnerships when sustainability (green and operational) provisions are built into municipal tax policies.

The St. Andrew’s-Wesley Homelessness and Mental Health Action Group requests that the federal government:

·        support a greater supply of affordable housing, including through measures to encourage investment in the development of rental housing and to maximize the affordability of market rental housing.

UNICEF Canada requests that the federal government:

·        ensure that the best interests of children are mainstreamed in economic and fiscal policy;

·        ensure coordination between social and economic policies;

·        devote a clearly articulated proportion of the budget to social expenditures for children at the federal and provincial/territorial levels of government;

·        ensure that national, regional and local authorities are guided by the best interests of children in their budget decision making;

·        implement measures to ensure that disparities among regions and groups of children are bridged in relation to the provision of social services; and

·        implement affirmative measures to ensure that children, particularly those who are from vulnerable or disadvantaged groups, are protected from the adverse effects of economic policies.

The Union of Environment Workers requests that the federal government:

·        take action in order to preserve fish stocks;

·        increase funding for the Department of Fisheries and Oceans to, at a minimum, the 1995 level adjusted for inflation;

·        double the budgets in the program areas of: wild salmon policy, stock assessments, habitat monitoring-protection-enhancement, enforcement and ocean science; and

·        provide adequate funding to address the northern cod crisis, consistent with the recommendation of the Northern Cod Review Panel.

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The United Steelworkers requests that the federal government:

·        ensure the existence of procurement standards;

·        ensure the existence of policies in respect of stable, low-cost energy;

·        invest in infrastructure; and

·        promote job creation in “green” industries.

The Université de Montréal requests that the federal government:

·        maintain and expand Canada’s leadership role in research and development;

·        review federal measures with a view to encouraging the private sector to become more involved in research and development activities in science and technology;

·        working with leading international networks, take action to ensure that Canada attracts the best and the brightest;

·        make timely increases in research funding in order that funding covers all costs generated by federal programs;

·        increase funding to the federal granting councils in order to increase research chairs and scholarships, and ensure that international students are eligible for granting council scholarships;

·        contribute to funding for international research teams, in particular by enabling Canadian researchers to join international teams and by stimulating Canadian leadership through start-up funding for international projects;

·        develop partnerships with strategic countries and regions, such as Mexico and Massachusetts;

·        increase the federal contribution to the indirect costs of research to 40%;

·        expand municipal infrastructure programs to ensure the eligibility of funds to rebuild university infrastructure;

·        increase funding for post-secondary education.

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The University of Manitoba requests that the federal government:

·        increase funding for post-secondary education through the Canada Social Transfer and enhance public accountability by ensuring that this earmarked funding results in actual increases for post-secondary education;

·        renew direct funding for ACCESS programming, and develop and fund other Aboriginal programs at the pre-university, undergraduate and graduate levels;

·        provide funding for specialized Aboriginal-focused infrastructure;

·        encourage the best and the brightest individuals, including international and Aboriginal students, to pursue graduate studies at Canadian institutions by increasing funding for the Canada Graduate Scholarships program, developing additional graduate and post-doctoral scholarships, and funding international education marketing efforts;

·        recapitalize and increase funding for the Canada Millennium Scholarship Foundation; and

·        provide increased funding through balanced investments in the four pillars of research, including increased research support for new PhD and post-doctoral graduates.

The Wellesley Institute requests that the federal government:

·        invest an additional $2.5 billion in housing and homelessness funding annually, financed through re-investing part of the surplus of the Canada Mortgage and Housing Corporation and through increased tax revenues; and

·        adopt a structured plan to bring social investments and taxation in line with other developed countries.

World Vision Canada requests that the federal government:

·        examine ways to increase further the financial resources available to not-for-profit organizations;

·        establish and implement a plan to meet the target for international aid spending of 0.7% of Gross National Product by 2015; and

·        ensure that Canada’s approach to international aid is informed by clear guidelines that uphold the importance of transparency and accountability and that put primordial importance on the impact of aid on the lives of the poor.

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