Madam Speaker, the FADOQ was expecting the Trudeau government to announce a minimum increase of 10% in old age security. The president, Gisèle Tassé-Goodman, stated, “It is absolutely unacceptable that the government is once again failing seniors, many of whom find themselves in a dismal financial situation that has been made worse by the pandemic.”
In last September's throne speech, the government reiterated its commitment to enhance old age security. The FADOQ network had reiterated its demand that this increased benefit be given to people between the ages of 65 and 74, not just those 75 and over. People whose only revenue is old age security and the guaranteed income supplement receive just barely over $18,000 a year, or about the equivalent of the cut-off established by the market basket measure.
Seniors in this situation therefore have to make do with the bare minimum, what Statistics Canada refers to as the market basket measure. That is barely enough to meet basic needs and does not include dental care, eye care or medication, as Ms. Tassé-Goodman points out. Like so many seniors who are among society's least well-off, the FADOQ network has still not digested the insulting indexation—that is the word used—of less than 1% of old age security and the guaranteed income supplement, a measure that was announced on October 1, ironically, on the International Day of Older Persons.
How long will the government continue mocking seniors? How can these people, who built this country, be overlooked like this, not just during the pandemic, but all the time? Increasing their old age security by less than $110 takes away their purchasing power, because the cost of everything continues to rise, whether it is housing, food or the essential services they are entitled to. The insult has gone on long enough.
I added that part about purchasing power because those are exactly the two things that the president of the FADOQ asked for when she appeared before the Standing Committee on the Status of Women, when we were talking about finding ways to help senior women during this pandemic. They must be given the financial means to stay at home and receive help, of course, but the health care system must also be given the means to care for seniors as well as their caregivers.
Seniors are extremely grateful to the medical personnel who take care of them day after day. They do not need national standards. It is not national standards that are going to take care of them. We need to give our health care workers the means to look after these people, through better working conditions, proper personal protective equipment and adequate supplies. In short, we can only really help seniors if the government stops cutting funding for the workers in our hospitals and throughout our health care system. The government needs to mind its own business.
Giving money to certain organizations that help seniors is good, but it is not nearly enough. It would be better if our seniors were no longer held hostage. They need to be reassured. The government needs to give Quebec and the provinces the resources to help them get through this public health crisis. Let us recognize and commend the efforts of our front-line workers and the efforts the public is making to reduce the pressure on our health care system.
The governments of Quebec and Canada have worked together for decades to meet the public's health care needs. After years of Liberal and Conservative budget cuts, these governments need to continue to work together to meet the needs of the aging population.
We hope that the Liberals will avoid the two temptations that governments face in times of crisis: austerity, such as refusing to increase health transfers to 35%, and interference in areas under provincial jurisdiction.
We need to take action to ensure that seniors are seen as a grey-haired source of strength, rather than an economic burden.