Mr. Speaker, the member should say “not for seniors but for some seniors”.
In fact, what the budget does not do is address those in most need in our society and they include seniors in poverty. An increase in the age credit does not help people who do not have any income to apply that non-refundable tax credit against.
The increase in the age at which RRSPs must be converted into RRIFs does not help someone who does not have an RRSP. Pension income splitting does not help someone who is a lone senior, who has no partner, whose income is below $36,800 of pension income or, if they are a couple, their retirement amounts or pensions are already taxed at the lowest possible rate.
The issue is that some seniors benefit but it is the more well off seniors who benefit, except those for whom the government broke its promise on income trusts and brought in a 31.5% tax on income trusts which destroyed $25 billion of the pension nest egg of seniors.