Madam Speaker, I thank my friend opposite for her advocacy for Canadians with disabilities. I am sure we all share her concern. Every barrier, be it physical or attitudinal, is a barrier to the well-being of persons with disabilities, especially to their mental and financial well-being. Allow me to bring colleagues up to date.
The application portal for the Canada disability benefit opened on June 20, and payments were distributed in July. Low-income persons who were eligible for the disability tax credit, between the ages of 18 and 64, could apply either online, by phone or in person at a Service Canada office.
This new monthly benefit provides a maximum of $2,400 in financial support per year, per person, and is expected to improve the financial security of more than 450,000 working-age Canadians with disabilities in 2025-26. To date, over 186,000 people are already receiving the benefit.
People who have filed their 2024 tax return and who are potentially eligible for the benefit received an official letter from the Government of Canada inviting them to apply. The government has also funded community-based navigator services across the country to help individuals who need assistance applying for the Canada disability benefit, the DTC and other provincial and territorial benefits.
The federal government has engaged extensively with provinces and territories, and called on them to exempt CDB payments from counting as income in relation to their income support programs. It continues to engage with provinces and territories with a view to maximizing the benefits of the CDB to eligible persons with disabilities.
Budget 2024 committed $6.1 billion over six years and $1.4 billion ongoing for the Canada disability benefit. I should remind the member for Saanich—Gulf Islands that, in the spirit of “nothing without us”, the Government of Canada developed the benefit in consultation with more than 8,000 Canadians, including persons with disabilities, disability stakeholders, indigenous governments and organizations, and provincial and territorial governments.
This benefit will make a difference because we know that persons with disabilities are more likely to live in poverty than their working-age peers without disabilities. This is due to economical and social exclusion, barriers to employment and other factors. Disability is expensive. People who live with a disability or support someone who has a disability know this all too well. Disability should not equal poverty, and that is why we have created the Canada disability benefit.