Over 1 million Canadians Have Been Lifted Out Of Poverty Under Trudeau Government

Leading up to the 2015 federal election, the leader of the Liberal Party Justin Trudeau made a campaign promise to grow the middle class and improve the standard of living for many Canadians living in poverty.

Once elected, Prime Minister Trudeau implemented a Poverty Reduction Strategy and set measurable targets that are aligned with the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals to end poverty.

Today Statistics Canada released the Report on the second Comprehensive Review of the Market Basket Measure. The paper describes the proposed changes to update Canada’s Official Poverty Line, which will be validated by Statistics Canada over the coming months.

Since 2015, poverty rates have decreased in all 10 provinces. Since 2017, poverty has decreased in Nova Scotia by 2.5 percentage points, by 1.8 percentage points in New Brunswick and by 1.4 percentage points in British Columbia.

The direct effect of the Trudeau poverty initiative has seen over 1 million Canadians been lifted out of poverty, including 334,000 children and 73,000 seniors.

This is the second release of Canadian Income Survey data since the Government of Canada launched Opportunity for All – Canada’s First Poverty Reduction Strategy which targets a 50% reduction by 2030, relative to 2015 levels

“The Government of Canada is committed to growing the middle class and helping those working hard to join it. Today’s announcement is further proof that our plan is working. However, we know there is much more to do. That is why we will keep working hard to reduce poverty and make sure that every Canadian has a real and fair chance to succeed.”
– The Honourable Ahmed Hussen, Minister of Families, Children and Social Development

The results of the survey show that more Canadians than ever are joining the middle class. Thanks to programs like the Canada Child Benefit, the increase to the Guaranteed Income Supplement and the middle-class tax cut, Canadians have more money in their pockets. Today’s release shows a significant reduction in poverty in Canada, representing the largest three-year reduction in Canadian history.