QUESTION PERIOD — Employment and Social Development
Canada Disability Benefit
May 5, 2022
Honourable senators, my question is for the Government Representative in the Senate.
Senator Gold, earlier this week I met with representatives from Quebec of the Multiple Sclerosis Society. As you know, MS is an autoimmune disease of the central nervous system. It is a complex, debilitating and unpredictable disease with mild to severe symptoms. We do not know the cause, nor do we have a cure for MS. What we do know is that Canada has one of the highest rates of MS in the world. Some 90,000 Canadians live with this disease.
My question is about the proposed “Canada Disability Benefit Act” that the government introduced through Bill C-35 in June 2021, near the tail end of the last Parliament. MS advocates are calling for this bill to be reintroduced. The Liberal Party also promised to reintroduce this bill in its election platform last fall. The minister responsible recently confirmed that it was one of her priorities, as is also stated in her mandate letter.
Senator Gold, can you tell this chamber — most importantly, Canadians living with a disability, including MS patients — when the government will reintroduce this bill?
Thank you for your question, honourable senator.
Indeed, the minister is engaged in this regard. It is a priority for this minister and for the government.
As honourable senators may know, Minister Qualtrough has engaged her provincial and territorial counterparts through the forum Federal, Provincial and Territorial Ministers Responsible for Social Services about the design and implementation of the anticipated Canada disability benefit. These engagements with the provinces and territories will continue over the coming months.
This builds upon previous engagement, consultation and, indeed, considerable funding for stakeholders to participate in this. With all these initiatives, the government wants to ensure — and is confident that it will ensure — to maximize the impact that new legislation might have. When the legislation is ready to be introduced, it will be so announced.
Thank you for that answer.
When I met with the MS Society this week, we talked about the list of criteria for Canadians with disabilities to be eligible for the disability benefit. They stressed the need for individuals with disabilities, including those who have episodic disabilities — like some MS patients — to also be eligible to receive benefit payments.
The language in Bill C-35 proposed that a person be eligible for a Canada disability benefit if they meet the eligibility criteria set out in the regulations. Can you assure us that the government is also considering allowing Canadians with episodic disabilities an opportunity to apply for this benefit, should the bill be reintroduced, and that the definition of “disability” that will be used to establish eligibility will be the one that appears in the Accessible Canada Act?
Thank you for your question.
As I mentioned just a moment ago, the government has launched an engagement process — that was last summer — to seek input on the Disability Inclusion Action Plan and the Canada disability benefit from disability communities, researchers, Indigenous organizations and other stakeholders.
As I also mentioned, work is still under way in the design and implementation of the Canada disability benefit and, therefore, I cannot speak to its contents. I will say that the government is committed to continuing to work with its counterparts in the provinces and territories and with the disabled communities to ensure that the benefit is designed with their needs in mind.
