Human Resources Committee on Nov. 26th, 2020

[The Vice-Chair, Conservative, Peter Kent]

Thank you, Minister; and thank you, Ms. Falk.

For the Liberals now, Mr. Dong, you have six minutes.

[Han Dong, Liberal, Don Valley North, ON]

Thank you, Chair Kent. It's great to see you in the chair's seat. Thank you for doing a wonderful job so far.

I want to talk to the minister about the New Horizons program. It's not a new program. I remember it was created under Prime Minister Chrétien's administration, but it has done a wonderful job in the last little while. I know in my riding there are a lot of active seniors groups and service agencies that benefit from this program. They have been very innovative in facing the pandemic. I've been reaching out to them and hearing a lot of positive feedback on this program.

First of all, can you speak to the specific measures that you put forward that positively affect the seniors, and also the organizations, that are applying for and receiving funding under this New Horizons program?

[Deb Schulte, Liberal, King—Vaughan, ON]

The New Horizons program for seniors has been incredibly effective on the ground, in helping seniors communities. We made sure that additional resources were there. We allowed organizations to pivot during the pandemic in the projects they had been funded for, if they could step up and deliver for seniors. Many did step up and helped to provide food, resources and access to important doctors' appointments, and they made sure they addressed isolation, providing tablets and support for using those tablets, and programs. I can tell you many stories. I've heard from lots of colleagues on both sides of the aisle who have told me how important this program has been in their communities.

We were able to support over 2,000 projects this year, in all corners of Canada. We also provided an additional $9 million to United Way Centraide to offer support through their networks as well. Through the $350-million emergency community support fund, they've also been reaching out to more vulnerable Canadians, including seniors, and I've seen that money also flowing in communities to help support our seniors.

It has been an incredibly positive program. As you know, we've made some changes to enhance it even further. The intake closed in October, and we're looking to review those programs and get them going early next year.

[Han Dong, Liberal, Don Valley North, ON]

Thank you, Minister.

You mentioned that you had heard stories or had seen evidence that these organizations and service delivery groups actually pivoted their programs in the context of the pandemic. Can you share with the committee some of the evidence and some of the stories you've heard of the changes they made to help senior Canadians during this pandemic?

[Deb Schulte, Liberal, King—Vaughan, ON]

Absolutely. I have a group in my riding, for example, called Human Endeavour. They ran the HOPE program. They used to bring seniors together. They had over 50 seniors who regularly came together for exercise programs and support programs. They pivoted quite quickly. They provided tablets and devices. They worked out a program with a provider to give low-cost access to these seniors. It's not always about having the tablet; it's about having the Internet access they need. Sometimes that is a cost barrier. They provided that access.

They run programs I think seven or eight times a week. They have over 1,000 people now signed up. They went from smaller, I would say, at maybe 50 to 100 people, to now up to 1,000 because of the incredible programs they are able to deliver with the support from the Government of Canada to make this possible.

If there is a silver lining—and it's very hard to say there is a silver lining in the pandemic as it's been so horrific—it's that it has allowed seniors to find other ways to connect and get the supports they need. They've been able to use those resources to connect with not only those programs but also family overseas and around the world. It's been a very, very powerful program.

[Han Dong, Liberal, Don Valley North, ON]

Great.

Minister, earlier I heard my colleague from the Conservative Party asking questions around the long-term care facilities and PSWs. It's not only the seniors at those facilities who are facing great challenges and a lot of times life-threatening situations. The seniors in our communities and our ridings, despite the fact that they've seen additional top-up or income coming from the federal government, are still facing a lot of challenges. I hear from seniors that their daily routine had to be changed. The support they used to get is no longer there, or it's been decreased, and they need that additional income support to help them.

Can you talk about the importance of overlapping with those additional supports, the funding coming out of your ministry, and how important that funding was to help seniors get through this pandemic?

[Deb Schulte, Liberal, King—Vaughan, ON]

You're absolutely right that it's not just about providing resources in the community to support seniors. It's also about giving seniors additional support directly.

As I mentioned in my introductory remarks, we were giving seniors a one-time tax-free payment of $300 for those on old age security, and an additional $200 for the more vulnerable seniors who were receiving the guaranteed income supplement. A senior couple on guaranteed income supplement would have received over $1,500 to help them with the additional costs during the pandemic.

[The Vice-Chair, Conservative, Peter Kent]

Thank you, Minister. We're at time.

Thank you, Mr. Dong.

I'll now give the floor to Ms. Chabot of the Bloc Québécois. You have six minutes.

[Louise Chabot, Bloc, Thérèse-De Blainville, QC]

Thank you very much, Mr. Acting Chair.

Madam Minister, we're pleased to welcome you. Thank you for taking the time to be with us.

I listened carefully to your speech. I have two questions for you.

We all agree that, during this particular period we're experiencing as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic, our seniors across the country have suffered greatly in many ways, both financially and health-wise.

I imagine that even though you've had discussions with all of your colleagues, you're fairly close to what's going on in the health field and in caucus.

I hear about staff shortages, I hear about staffing and I hear about national standards for long-term care. With all due respect to my colleagues, that's not the solution. Health care is exclusively a provincial responsibility.

If there's a solution to effectively address the needs of seniors and health needs in our provinces, it's through an increase in the Canada health transfer. This increase must also take demographics into account, which the program doesn't do. In fact, the provinces are unanimous on this issue.

As Minister of Seniors within the government, close to health, do you have any work that will highlight this response to the pressing issues facing our seniors?

[Deb Schulte, Liberal, King—Vaughan, ON]

It is a pleasure to be here with you all today.

You're absolutely right. Our focus has been on the health of Canadians, especially during the pandemic, and we have been working very closely alongside the provinces and territories to make sure that as they identified where their needs were, we have provided the resources, not just in money but in actual resources. The extreme example is the Canadian Forces. When there was a crisis in some of the long-term care homes, we stepped up and provided the Canadian Forces. Then we supported the Red Cross to also be there, and we supported with personal protective equipment—

[Louise Chabot, Bloc, Thérèse-De Blainville, QC]

Thank you, Madam Minister, but my question was on the Canada health transfer.

Do you believe that the solution is sustainable through increased transfers, as requested by the provinces?

[Deb Schulte, Liberal, King—Vaughan, ON]

The health transfer is really the purview of the Minister of Health. I'm trying to explain that right now we have been supporting the premiers. They've been identifying what their needs are in additional money. We've been giving additional money from early in the pandemic to help make the health system more robust. That was part of the $19 billion of safe restart money, and $740 million of that went specifically to help more vulnerable Canadians in long-term care by helping those systems to be more robust. That could be with resources of staffing or with protection, prevention protection, PPE.

These are the kinds of things that were identified that were needed, and we stepped up with additional money and also resources in contact tracing and testing and with the military and the Red Cross. We have been there not just in money but in resources as well, standing with the provinces and territories and supporting them as they deal with delivering health care to Canadians in this pandemic.

[Louise Chabot, Bloc, Thérèse-De Blainville, QC]

As I understand it, the answer is no. You are not there yet: we are talking about solutions to meet short-term needs, not looking at long-term solutions. Thank you.

In another area, I am going to talk about the precarious financial situation of seniors. I may not have the time to give you all the figures, but I feel that you are well aware of the fact that, starting at 65, the income of a single person, particularly 65-year-old women, adding up the old age security pension and the guaranteed income supplement, scarcely comes to $18,000, on average. That figure does not even allow for the range of services that seniors deserve.

The Bloc Québécois' position is clear: the old age security pension must be increased by $110 for seniors as soon as they reach 65, not 75, as you propose. If we do not, we will create two classes of seniors.

A one-time amount of $300 was added to the old age security benefit, and that is all. That's very little. Financially, seniors have been ignored. I feel that the solution also lies in protecting the social safety net that the old age security pension represents.

Are you ready to provide them with that amount on a permanent basis?

[Deb Schulte, Liberal, King—Vaughan, ON]

I really appreciate your comments and your questions, and I'm hearing the same thing from seniors and senior stakeholders across the country—that seniors need more support—which is why you heard in the throne speech that we are continuing with our recommitment of increasing old age security once a senior turns 75. We have obviously focused right now on the pandemic, making sure that seniors get more supports directly and also through the community.

I want to repeat that the support we gave over the summer—the one-time payment to OAS and the guaranteed income supplement in addition to the GST credit—gave senior couples on guaranteed income supplement over $1,500 tax-free to help them.

I recognize that this is now—

[The Vice-Chair, Conservative, Peter Kent]

Thank you, Minister. We're at—

[Deb Schulte, Liberal, King—Vaughan, ON]

—and we need to look at doing more in the future. Thank you.

[The Vice-Chair, Conservative, Peter Kent]

Thank you, Ms. Chabot.

We'll move to the NDP now, and Ms. Gazan.

[Leah Gazan, NDP, Winnipeg Centre, MB]

Thank you so much, Chair. Thank you to the minister for being here today.

Lions Place, in my riding, has recently had their 35-year federal housing subsidy agreement come to an end, which included a rental subsidy for seniors. Many seniors I've spoken with, who were choosing literally between medication and rent even with a rental subsidy, are now worried about being on the streets. Unfortunately, the provincial government in Manitoba has yet to sign the agreement with the federal government to get dollars flowing under the national housing strategy. We have found other ways and other avenues to get money to people in our community, considering the behaviour of the current Conservative provincial government.

Are you going to find different ways to address this issue, or are you going to continue to leave this so that seniors in my riding—seniors who deserve to be treated with dignity—end up on the streets?

[Deb Schulte, Liberal, King—Vaughan, ON]

Thank you very much for raising that important question and important concern.

We know that housing is a fundamental necessity for security for Canadians and for seniors. We know every senior deserves to have a dignified place to call home—

[Leah Gazan, NDP, Winnipeg Centre, MB]

Just because of limits of time, I think we all can agree that everyone should have a house and live in dignity. I'd like you to answer my question.

Do you have any plans in place to ensure that monies are given to ensure that seniors continue to get rental subsidies so they don't end up on the streets?

[Deb Schulte, Liberal, King—Vaughan, ON]

Obviously, as you mentioned, we've been working through the provinces and territories to provide our programs through our national housing strategy.

Through the national housing strategy, you don't have to have the province involved. In some of the streams, you just need to have a really good project and be able to come forward with that. We'll be working with municipalities, not-for-profits and organizations to be able to bring forward great ideas that will help us—

[Leah Gazan, NDP, Winnipeg Centre, MB]

Because this is a dire situation, will you commit to working with the seniors at Lions Place to ensure that they have what they need, so that they don't end up on the streets?

[Deb Schulte, Liberal, King—Vaughan, ON]

I would like you to bring forward the details of that particular request to me. We will take a look at it and see what we can do to assist. We have the national housing strategy that is there to help—

[Leah Gazan, NDP, Winnipeg Centre, MB]

Just because I have other questions.... Your answer is “maybe”. I will follow up. I appreciate that.

[Deb Schulte, Liberal, King—Vaughan, ON]

Thank you.