It's time to reduce poverty and improve affordability by implementing the responsible, modern, and fair retirement policy reforms Canadians want in Budget 2026.

Ottawa can deliver on the promise to make life more affordable for Canadians right now – without raising taxes or the deficit – by reforming Old Age Security (OAS). This one action would eliminate seniors’ poverty and free up billions to strengthen affordability for young and working-age people.

OAS is unusual in the generosity it shows to financially secure families, delivering $18,000 a year to retired couples with $185,000 in household income – and providing partial subsidies to households with $300,000. In contrast, the Canada Child Benefit is clawed back at $81,000 of household income, and two-person households are only eligible for Canada Student Grants with incomes below $54,000. By the end of the decade, Canadian taxpayers will send $17.5 billion in annual OAS subsidies to retirees with six-figure incomes. This amount is:

- 10 times larger than investments to make housing more affordable announced in the 2026 Spring Economic Update.
- 9 times larger than funding delivered through the groceries and essentials benefit.
- 7 times larger than what Canadians save from the suspension of the federal gas tax.
- More than double total federal spending on $10-a-day child care.

The fix is simple: begin reducing OAS subsidies for retired couples once household income exceeds $100,000.

This responsible reform would protect or improve benefits for 80% of recipients, while asking the top 20% to accept about $3,000 less annually. It would save $7 billion today, and $9 billion by 2030 — with savings drawn entirely from households with 35% more income than the median for Canadian families.

With these funds, Canada could:

- Eliminate seniors’ poverty by adding $5,000 for each of the 400,000 older people living below the official poverty line.
- Deliver a $3,000 annual rent subsidy to a million young people struggling to afford a home.
- Keep Canada Student Grants at $4,200 for a million postsecondary students (not cut them to $3,000).
- Subsidize 100,000 more $10-a-day child care spaces, meeting Ottawa’s target of 250,000.
- Expand the Youth Climate Corps from a 1,000-person pilot to tens of thousands – helping young people build skills, earn living wages, and reduce unemployment.

Modernizing OAS has wide appeal. Three-quarters of Canadians – including seniors – consistently support changes. Just 10% think the status quo is acceptable. Liberals like former Finance Minister John Manley and Conservatives like Leader Pierre Poilievre have identified the need for program updates. Reforms are called for by diverse leaders concerned with:

- Improving health outcomes (Health Officers Council of BC).
- Reducing poverty and economic precarity (Maytree Foundation, Basic Income Canada Network, Missing Middle Initiative, Build Canada).
- Responsible public spending (Globe & Mail Editorial Board, Canadian Affairs Editorial Board).
- Fairly managing growing cost pressures (Fraser Institute, CD Howe Institute).

Building homes and infrastructure, diversifying trade, and growing the economy may succeed in delivering greater affordability over the medium-term. But the Canadians of all ages struggling to make ends meet in the face of rising costs shouldn’t have to wait years for solutions. A commitment to OAS reform in 2026 Budget will help millions of Canadians to thrive right now, by making the largest improvement to income security Canada has achieved in a generation.

As the government sets its spending priorities and seeks high-impact investments, it is time to modernize subsidies for financially secure retirees. The fiscal return is high – and Canadians are ready.