QUESTION PERIOD — Employment and Social Development
Access to Benefits
May 5, 2026
Senator Moreau, this month marks the fiftieth anniversary of Canada signing on to the International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights. Article 11 recognizes the right “. . . to an adequate standard of living . . . including adequate food, clothing and housing . . .,” with Canada assuming a corresponding obligation to “ . . . take appropriate steps to ensure the realization of this right . . . .”
This week, as we have already heard, Statistics Canada revealed that more than 1 in 10 Canadians — at least 4.5 million people — lack an adequate standard of living. That’s an increase of 60% just since 2020 and a glaring gap in a country that prides itself on its human rights record internationally.
What concrete steps will Canada take to ensure human rights protections, to eliminate poverty and homelessness and meet international obligations so that this fiftieth anniversary can actually warrant celebration?
I will follow up on my answer to Senator Ataullahjan’s question. While there is still more to do, and the government has been working to alleviate poverty for more and more Canadians, the government is taking a number of actions — you were asking about concrete action.
First, the government is launching the automatic federal benefits for the 2026 tax year. It will reach up to 5.5 million low‑income Canadians to ensure they receive the government benefits they qualify for, such as the GST/HST credit, the Canada Child Benefit, the Canada Disability Benefit and more. Second, the government has dedicated $1 billion, specifically for transitional and supportive housing, to give people who face homelessness both the homes and the support they need. The Reaching Home program is central to that effort. It will support local organizations and has already helped nearly 112,000 Canadians find stable housing —
Thank you, Senator Moreau.
Thank you for that information, and we look forward to more.
Statistics Canada confirms that Indigenous Peoples, in particular, are almost twice as likely as non-Indigenous Canadians to experience poverty. What specific actions is the government undertaking to meet Canada’s seven-year-old commitment to the Calls for Justice of the National Inquiry into Missing and Murdered Indigenous Women and Girls to, at the very least, implement the call for a national guaranteed livable income?
This morning, the Prime Minister announced that the National Family and Survivors Circle will be allocated an additional $2.6 million in funding over three years to ensure the organization has a tool to build a safer and more equitable society. In the Spring Economic Update, we already announced $2.8 billion over five years to strengthen Indigenous housing support.
