Question Period Notes
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The Government of Canada recently announced an extension to the temporary increases to Canada Student Grants and Canada Student Loans for the 2026-27 academic year. Maintaining the 40% increase to grants for full-time students, part-time students, students with disabilities and students with dependants, and the Canada Student Loan limit increase from $210 to $300 per week of study, will continue to help make post-secondary education affordable for students. The Government of Canada is committed to reducing financial barriers to support students’ access to post-secondary education.
The Government is investing an additional $1.2 billion in 2026-2027 to maintain the temporary increase to Canada Student Grants by 40 percent above baseline 2019 levels, and to maintain the temporary increase in the weekly Canada Student Loan limit from $210 to $300.
This measure is expected to help 720,000 students access and afford post-secondary education.
In 2024-2025, approximately:
617,000 students benefited from $2.7 billion in non-repayable Canada Student Grants.
710,000 students received $5.6 billion in interest-free Canada Student Loans.
298,000 student loan borrowers received support under the Repayment Assistance Plan, aimed at those who experience difficulty in repaying their student loans.
Existing workforce development approaches to meet in-demand occupations are fragmented, not well coordinated with Provinces and Territories and lack collaboration mechanisms that support alignment. While existing initiatives and networks are producing positive outcomes; there is a need for greater cohesion and more strategic workforce development, particularly in the current geopolitical and economic context, and to achieve the government’s national economic missions.Global economic instability and shifting trade relationships are placing significant pressure on some of Canada’s largest sectors, creating additional and evolving challenges for Canada’s workforce. Tariffs are impacting export-dependent industries and their supply chains, leading to job losses.
By January 2026, there were about three unemployed people for every one job vacancy in Canada. Compared with a year earlier, most provinces and industries saw fewer openings and more people looking for work, indicating a looser labour market amid economic uncertainty and a mismatch between the skills needed by employers and the skills offered by job seekers.
Each sector of our economy is unique and faces challenges that vary based on each sector’s distinct labour market realities. As a result, sectors are grappling with a range of labour market pressures, including:
Demographic shifts – Construction sector’s workforce is older than the national average which means a significant retirement wave. By 2034, almost 269,000 workers, or 21% of the 2024 labour force, are projected to retire.
Geopolitical and trade dynamics –With the introduction of tariffs, manufacturers paused expansions, and 28% of surveyed businesses began implementing hiring freezes.
Significant labour shortages – in the Transportation sector for example, the projected shortages by 2035 will be anywhere between 70,000 to 130,000; predominantly in aviation, followed by trucking.
Furthermore, in their report released in Summer 2025, Members of the Union-Led Advisory Table highlighted the lack of a consistent, collaborative forum in which to identify and respond to the needs of workers in industries, sectors, and occupations undergoing transition, resulting in a deep institutional deficit. To fix this, they recommended to re-establish Sectoral Partnership Councils for a modern transitioning economy.
To respond to both profound workforce challenges and to help improve collaboration across sectors in tackling these, Workforce Alliances and a Sectoral Workforce Innovation Fund were announced.
Passport Program Services
The Government is leveraging artificial intelligence at scale to improve productivity, streamline operations, and deliver faster, more efficient services to Canadians.
The Minister of Jobs and Families launched the Tripartite Advisory Council on March 12, 2026. The council has a mandate to serve as a consultative body comprised of employer and employee representatives that provides advice to the Minister and the Secretary of State (Labour), on emerging labour issues.The Tripartite Advisory Council is composed of three members of labour organizations and three members of employer associations in the federal jurisdiction. Members are not remunerated.
Members of the Tripartite Advisory Council include:
Bea Bruske, President, Canadian Labour Congress
Lana Payne, National President, Unifor
Magali Picard, President, Fédération des travailleurs et travailleuses du Québec
Derrick Hynes, President and Chief Executive Officer, Federally Regulated Employers - Transportation and Communications
Goldy Hyder, President and Chief Executive Officer, Business Council of Canada
Michelle LLambías Meunier, President and Chief Executive Officer, Conseil du patronat du Quebec
The Tripartite Advisory Council is presided by the interim Chair, Rob Wright, Deputy Minister of Labour and Associate Deputy Minister of Employment and Social Development.
Following the release of Budget 2025 and announcements of supports for tariff impacted sectors, how is the Government of Canada continuing to support workers and businesses to adapt to new economic realities? Economic uncertainty from our changing relationship with the US exacerbates economic trends, such as demographic shifts, technological change, global supply chain disruptions, and energy transitions which, taken together, pose profound challenges for Canada’s economy and labour market.
The unemployment rate increased by 0.2% from January 2026, bringing the national rate to 6.7% per cent.
To weather the uncertainty resulting from the ongoing trade-dispute, the Government of Canada implemented a series of measures to help workers and businesses in trade-exposed sectors. Through Budget 2025 and other recent announcements, the Government of Canada introduced broader supports to invest in workers so that they can drive Canada’s economic transformation with new skills and training.
For what purpose is $6.3 billion being sought by the Canada Revenue Agency in the 2026-27 Main Estimates? Why is there a $4.1 billion decrease over the previous year?
For what purpose is $6.3 billion being sought by the Canada Revenue Agency in the 2026-27 Main Estimates? Why is there a $4.1 billion decrease over the previous year?
The Government has announced temporary measures under the Temporary Foreign Worker Program in recognition of the economic difficulties and pressures faced by rural communities. Recent labour market analysis and engagement with rural stakeholders show ongoing unique labour market pressures in rural areas, including labour shortages, limited labour mobility, and challenges attracting and retaining workers.
In 2025, rural areas in Canada faced a tighter labour market, with an unemployment rate of 5.5% compared with 7.0% in urban areas (Census Metropolitan Areas (CMAs)); while also having an older workforce, with an average age of 44 versus 41 in CMAs.
The Government of Canada is taking action and introducing facilitative, time-limited measures for employers in Canada’s rural communities.
From April 1, 2026, to March 31, 2027, provinces and territories can opt-in to measures that will enable employers with rural worksites (located outside of CMAs) to retain their existing low wage temporary foreign workforce hired under the Temporary Foreign Worker Program, and hire additional low wage workers beyond the standard 10% program cap.
These measures could result in a maximum of approximately 23,000 retained or additional temporary foreign workers, resulting in a minimal 0.05% increase to the Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada (IRCC) targets for temporary residents by December 2027.
These measures build on IRCC’s recently announced one-time Temporary Resident to Permanent Resident (TR to PR) pathway for 33,000 temporary residents in rural areas in 2026 and 2027.
Issues have recently been raised on the status of official residences and the deferred maintenance deficit, which have impacted the overall condition of the official residences’ portfolio, including 24 Sussex Drive.