Transit, healthcare and community safety commitments to Brampton in Federal and Provincial budgets
Published March 31, 2023 at 9:43 am
The City is welcoming new and renewed pledges from the Provincial and Federal governments to improve safety, transit, healthcare, affordable housing and much more in Brampton.
Both the Federal and Provincial budgets have been released and Mayor Patrick Brown says the spending plans have “lots of wins” for Brampton.
In the Ontario budget, Brown applauded renewed commitments to the Peel Memorial Centre upgrade program and a $3.6 billion investment to retool and modernize Stellantis automotive plants in Brampton and Windsor.
The provincial budget also reaffirmed funding for transit projects in the city, like the new bus loop for GO Transit and Brampton Transit riders, and the Hazel McCallion Line which will help move residents between Mississauga and Brampton.
The Province is also eliminating double fares for Brampton Transit riders when using GO Transit services.
“This means that after riders pay their fare for a GO bus or train, they do not pay again when accessing Brampton Transit,” the City said in a release, adding that Brampton Transit riders will also have more options to pay fares on a PRESTO device, including with credit cards, smartphones, or smartwatches.
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As for the Federal budget, the City highlighted $49.5 million in funding over five years for the Communities at Risk: Security Infrastructure Program, and $25.4 million over five years to support Canada’s Anti-Racism Strategy.
There have been several incidents of places of worship being targeted or vandalized in Brampton and Mississauga recently, and Mayor Brown said he was pleased to see additional support for protecting places of worship in the budget.
“Religious freedom is a cornerstone of a strong democracy and important to our multi-faith community,” Brown said, adding that he is looking forward to working with the federal government “to create more housing options to ensure everyone has a safe, secure home to learn and grow.”
Also included in the federal budget is a new Grocery Rebate program, aimed at relieving inflation relief for some 11 million low- and modest-income Canadians and families.
The Liberals say the budget is prioritizing spending on healthcare, transitioning Canadian businesses to a clean economy and offering affordability measures to help Canadians deal with high prices from inflation.
The budget will see $59.5 billion in new spending over the next five years, including $8.3 billion in the next year.
Of the money set aside for the next five years, $13 billion is the expected cost of the Canada dental benefit intended to help families pay for necessary care and some $2.5 billion is earmarked for another one-time doubling of GST rebates this financial year to help low-income Canadians struggling with high prices and inflation.
Other highlights include a new fee cap that payday lenders can charge to fight predatory lending. The budget says a Criminal Code amendment will be made to include the changes, and the government also plans to lower the maximum interest rates payday lenders can charge to an annual percentage rate of 35 per cent.
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