The Fall Economic Update doesn’t update much for generational fairness

If you want Canada to work fairly for all generations, here are five key take-aways from the Government of Canada’s Fall Economic Statement, released on November 3, 2022.

1. The government deserves praise for holding firm on pollution pricing. We can’t solve the squeeze on our wallets by scaling back climate action. To do so would be false economy, and a profound intergenerational injustice for our kids and grandkids who face the lion’s share of climate risks.
2. We’re not upholding the intergenerational golden rule to treat other generations as you’d want your generation to be treated. Benefits for seniors continue to eclipse benefits for families raising kids, but more young families struggle with poverty and deteriorating wellbeing thanks to falling wages, rising costs, and growing debts.
3. No new actions are proposed to address the biggest cost of living – housing. The inflation pressures on Canadians haven’t translated into enough pressure on the Government to remedy inaccurate inflation data that has contributed to rising home prices.
4. Proposed measures for a “fair tax system” don’t include disrupting the tax shelter that turns owning a home into a tax-free investment strategy. Home owners across Canada are sharing in $3.2 trillion in housing wealth gains, but the rising prices fueling this windfall are crushing affordability for younger people and newcomers to Canada. We can protect real shelters, not tax shelters, by putting a price on housing inequity – a proposals supported by 68% of Canadians. 
5. Making student loans more affordable by eliminating interest is a positive step, but a lot more needs to be done to fix the broken generational system that makes hard work no longer pay off for young people today the way it did for previous generations. Check out our solutions. 

We’re moving into the season of government budgets – and if you follow Gen Squeeze, you’ll know we think this is a key moment to exercise your democratic muscles. That’s why pushing governments to design their budgets to promote wellbeing from the early years onwards is a big part of what we do. 

Check out what we’re asking governments to prioritize in 2023. 

Then join us in asking all governments to make Canada work for all generations!