QUESTION PERIOD — Ministry of Employment and Social Development
Social Isolation
October 7, 2025
Madam Secretary, the number of seniors in Canada is increasing rapidly. Members of this chamber will be contributing to that. It is projected that by 2038 the number of seniors will have doubled since 2013. The Federal/Provincial/Territorial Working Group on Social Isolation and Social Innovation reminded us that loneliness affects about one quarter of seniors and is a well-documented risk factor for many negative health outcomes and a poor quality of life.
What is the federal government doing to prepare for what could become an epidemic of loneliness among seniors?
Thank you for the important question. This is a growing issue, and we know that social isolation is part of the consideration of the social determinants of health that impact health outcomes and can impact other budgetary areas if individuals are not living healthfully.
This is an area that requires attention, and one of the ways that we are ensuring that we’re combating social isolation is through the New Horizons for Seniors Program. This is a program that funds initiatives, builds stronger, more inclusive communities and is focused on supporting projects that are led by and for seniors to combat social isolation.
Over the summer I had the opportunity to see the impacts of the New Horizons for Seniors Program in many communities, including in some of the communities with the highest ratio of seniors in Canada. I can tell you that there are seniors out there who are coming together, designing their own programs, including chair yoga for seniors or a men’s shed focusing on creating Diwali celebrations. Seniors are finding creative ways through using this funding, which has financed over 43,000 local community-based projects. Every year, it funds over 2,900 community-based projects across the country to combat social isolation.
Thank you for that. That’s good to hear. The World Health Organization, in collaboration with the Government of Canada, has created an initiative called Age‑Friendly Communities, which helps address seniors’ loneliness, but only a small number of Canadian communities are participating. Is the government actively encouraging municipalities to increase the number of communities in Canada participating in this program, and, if so, how is it doing so?
Thank you. Yes, I’ve seen some great reports myself as well of some of these communities, great anecdotes and heartwarming stories. Certainly, in my conversations with local community leaders, this is something that I bring up.
The federal government’s part to play in that is through the funding initiatives we have with the provinces and territories, but a lot of those dollars are used locally at the municipal level, and there are a lot of innovative ideas being piloted across the country. Some are in my own riding. Certainly, this is something that we definitely encourage the use of those dollars to go towards.
