September 21, 2010

This October 1st Canadians from coast to coast will celebrate Canadian seniors and recognize the important contributions that they continue to make.
In June, our Government introduced Bill C-40, An Act to establish National Seniors Day. I was proud to join fellow parliamentarians in support of this Bill, which passed all stages in the House of Commons.  Currently the Bill remains in the Senate and is unlikely to become law before October 1st, the proposed date for National Seniors Day. (This day was chosen to coincide with the United Nations International Day of the Older Persons.)

But why wait another 365 days to say ‘thank-you’ to the men and women who have built this country? This October 1st, I encourage you to join me in celebrating the seniors in our community and recognizing the important contributions that they make.

Our Conservative Government has delivered for seniors in a variety of ways. Some of the initiatives taken to provide tax relief to seniors and pensioners include:

• Introducing pension income splitting, saving senior couples thousands of dollars in taxes;
• Doubling the pension income credit from $1,000 to $2,000;
• Increasing the Age Tax Credit from $4,066 to $6,408;
• Increasing the age limit for the maturation of a registered retirement savings plan (RRSP) from 69 to 71;
• Increasing the Guaranteed Income Supplement (GIS) exemption from $500 to $3500;
• Passing legislation to make applying for benefits easier – such as establishing a one-time (rather than annual) application for GIS;
• Introducing the Tax Free Savings Account, which is particularly beneficial to seniors given that its withdrawals are GIS-exempt;
• Lowering the GST from 7 to 5 percent; and
• During the recent global economic downturn, providing seniors with $200 million in tax relief by reducing the required minimum withdrawal amount for 2008 from Registered Retirement Income Funds by 25 percent, in recognition of the impact of the deterioration in market conditions on retirement savings

Other measures our Conservative Government has taken to assist seniors include:

• Investing an additional $5 million per year in the New Horizons Program, bringing the total overall budget to $40 million per year;
• Creating a Minister responsible for seniors to represent seniors at the Cabinet table;
• Creating a National Seniors Council to give seniors a voice in issues that matter to them;
• Launching an Elder Abuse Awareness campaign to raise public awareness of what constitutes elder abuse and provide information about the support that is available; and
• Improving access to to EI Compassionate Care.

Notwithstanding these concrete actions we have taken, our government recognizes that much still needs to be done. I can assure you that we will continue on our path to work hard to meet the needs of Canadian seniors. Along with territorial, provincial and municipal partners, we are continually working to develop sustainable ways to improve the quality of life for older Canadians.

On October 1, please join me in celebrating Canada’s seniors!