Gerard Kennedy

Childcare and Higher Education

Our young families need support in caring for their children. Despite promises, not one new space has been created by the Harper Conservatives, and access to post-secondary education has not improved.

Liberals will add 165,000 childcare spaces and double the existing child tax credit for parents.

Liberals will revamp student financial support to guarantee access to all students.

Economic Progress, Cities and the Arts

Canada’s economy is suffering from lost jobs and slowing investment. The Harper “market-only” approach doesn’t work.

Liberals will restore cuts to the arts sector and double funding to the Canada Council for the Arts.

Liberals will invest in jobs created by research and promising technologies.

Liberals will invest $70 billion in transit and other infrastructure.

Liberals will fix our immigration system to support immigrant success.

Climate Change and Clear Air

The Conservatives have embarrassed Canada internationally and let us all down by first denying the climate change crisis and cancelling programs and then having no credible plan to reduce our carbon footprint.

The Liberal Green Shift will move us forward by taxing people less and taxing pollution more, giving incentives to people and businesses alike.

The average family will receive $1,300 in “green credits”.

Hospitals and Medicine

The Conservatives promised to lower waiting times but have failed, seemingly setting a climate for private health care.

Liberals will train more doctors and nurses for more family care and surgeries ($455 million) and fund a new catastrophic drug program for Canadians with serious diseases.

Poverty Reduction

The Harper government has rejected Liberal proposals to reduce poverty by 30% in five years.

Liberals will assist low income workers and families with children by giving new refundable tax credits.

Seniors will receive a $600 a year increase in the Guaranteed Income Supplement (GIS).

Under the cover of a Speech from the Throne devoid of content the federal government slipped out some hard facts about failed job creation that Stephen Harper would prefer Canadians didn’t notice, Liberal Infrastructure Critic Gerard Kennedy said today.

Toronto – Gerard Kennedy, M.P. for Parkdale-High Park is hosting a next day “Budget Breakfast” to allow area residents to review and give feedback on the 2010 Federal Budget which will be presented to Parliament on Thursday March 4th in Ottawa.

At the Community Council meeting on February 18, Gerard released a 8-page report that details his parliamentary and community initiatives and activities since October.

Liberal MPs today called on the Harper government to increase funding for the federal program to prevent and reduce homelessness, and commit to sustained, long term funding.