action now. We must contribute our fair share to international efforts, first by making progress at the domestic level.
way we design and operate manufacturing and industrial operations and to the waywe design products. These arechanges that will avoid or minimize the creation of pollutants and waste, and thereby reduce the overall risk to human health or the environment.
The first application of our strategy has been in preparing amendments to the Canadian Environmental Protection Act (CEPA); it is now time to apply this strategy more broadly. A new Liberal government will expand the application ofthe Pollution
Prevention Strategy across federal legislation, programs, and policies. Wewill start by build-ing on the positions established and the progress achieved in our first mandate by making passage of a renewed CEPA an early priority in asecond mandate.
International Leadership
Domestic action alone isnot enough to protect Canada's environment. New scientific evidence increasingly indicates that many envi-ronmental problems cross borders andso must be dealt with on an international level. Ensuring a healthy environment for Canadians is a major foreign policy goal.Wemust pursue solutions
to international threats to Canada's environ-ment and speakforcefully in allcases where our environmental security isthreatened.
The Liberal government isdetermined to remain aleader inthe international commu-nity. By lending our expertise on environmen-tal issues to other nations and using our international reputation as an honest broker to achieve workable solutions, Canada can help resolve global environmental problems.
One wayto do soisthrough scientific research cooperation between countries.
Canada isa leader in developing the science to address global environmental threats such asclimate change, long-range transport of air pollutants to areas likethe Arctic and the Great Lakes, ozone layer thinning, and the loss of biodiversity. We will continue to be a leader in these and other areas.
Climate Change
In environmental science, "climate change"
means the changes in global weather patterns caused byhuman-generated greenhouse gasemissions into the Earth's atmosphere.
International scientists reached aconsensus in 1995that human-induced climate
change is a real and growing threat.
The Liberal government agrees that climate change is one oftoday's most crucial environmental issues, posing a threat to Canada's ecological and economic well-being.
Because of Canada's high northern latitude, we may bedisproportionately affected by global climate change, so we need to under-stand better the impacts of climate change within Canada. In1996 we completed the Mackenzie Basin Impact Study, a comprehen-sive evaluation ofthe impacts of climate change inthe Canadian Arctic. We will continue to conduct scientific analyses like this world-class study to determine the regional effects of climate change.
The costs of inaction on climate change aretoo high for us not to take thoughtful and effective action now. Although Canada emits only 2.5 percent of global greenhouse gases, Liberals believe we have a responsibility as a technologically advanced nation to take progressive measures and playa leadership role, both domestically and internationally, in reducing greenhouse gasemissions. We must contribute our fair share to international efforts, first bymaking progress atthe domes-tic level. It isthrough the example we setand the efforts we make that we gain the credibil-ity and authority to encourage other nations to take similar action.
According to current projections, Canada, like most other industrialized nations, will not meet its international commitment to stabilize greenhouse gases at1990 levels by the year 2000. Anew Liberal government will redouble our efforts to stabilize emissions
of greenhouse gases and to develop new approaches to meet targets set through international negotiations.
The Liberal government is committed to strong federal action and to working with the provinces, the private sector, and the environ-mental community to decrease greenhouse gas emissions. We will also continue to support municipal and community-based actions to reduce these emissions.
Efforts to build public awareness of the problems and solutions presented by climate change will be strengthened. In addition, a new Liberal government will advance a newnational transportation strategy that addresses fuel economy standards, fleet procurement policies, inspection and mainte-nance programs, and urban demand-side management. Striking alliances with our major trading partners and working with the provinces, territories, and municipalities will be key to the success of this strategy.
Canada's action plan on climate change includes a challenge to governments and the private sector to reduce greenhouse gases on a voluntary basis. These efforts, which must meet certain criteria, are then recorded in a public registry. In a second mandate, a Liberal government will reinforce and broaden this initiative by challenging every greenhouse gas emitter - public, industrial, commercial, or individual - to implement all energy-efficiency improvements that pay for themselves within fiveyears.
Governments around the world are look-ing at uslook-ing more innovative, flexible, and economically efficient policy tools that encourage reduction of greenhouse gas
emis-sions. The international community is weighing the use of emissions trading as one cost-effective method of achieving this goal. Emissions trading allows firms to trade the right to emit greenhouse gases, working within a ceiling imposed by the government.
In considering this option, Canada must take into account both the realities of our econ-omy and the strategies of our major trading partners. In consultation with stakeholders, a new Liberal government will design options for an emissions trading program for green-house gases that work within a Canadian context, while respecting the international framework.
New technologies are essential to allevi-ating climate change. The Liberal government will continue to promote renewable energy and energy efficiency through research and development support and tax policies. We will also help these emerging industries through our purchasing power. This means relying more on power produced from renewable energy for meeting the government's own electricity needs, using alternative transporta-tion fuels in our own vehicles, and continuing to improve energy efficiency in our own facili-ties. These measures will result in the devel-opment of new technologies that will help
•.Canada meet its targets and form the basis
for export opportunities.
Working Cooperatively on Environmental Solutions
For Canada to be a responsible steward of our natural heritage, we need commitment from all orders of government and participation from all Canadians.
In 1996 the federal and provincial minis-ters of the environment established the Canada-Wide Accord on Environmental Harmonization, an agreement that builds on the strengths of all governments to achieve the highest standards of environmental qual-ity.This agreement will result in greater effi-ciency and streamlining of the efforts of all governments. A new Liberal government will continue to take a leadership role in working with the provinces to develop and implement the highest environmental standards, define the necessary measures and policies to meet these standards, and follow through with decisive action.
Canada's young people are among our strongest and most dedicated allies in the protection and promotion of a healthy envi-ronment. Because of their keen interest and unequivocal support, the Liberal government has formed a Youth Round Table to advise the Minister of the Environment on environmen-tal policy. This will give Canadian youth a stronger voice in deciding what kind of world they will inherit.
C
anadians have always striven to maintain a successful balance between taking responsibility for themselves and sharing responsibility for others. While we honour indi-vidual independence and achievement, we also believe strongly incompassion and fairness. We seethis balance in momentous national achieve·ments like medicare and in the individual contri-butions of over 6 million dedicated volunteers in our communities.
Canadians look to their governments to ensure that the key elements we all need to thrive and build a secure future are available to everyone. These determine the opportunities open to us as individuals and include a safe and healthy childhood, access to quality education, universal health care, participation in the labour market, support in the event of job loss or disability, and a secure retirement.
Canadians, with the help of our families and communities, also take individual responsi-bility for making the most of these advantages and for seizing the opportunities before us.
Despite the changes our society has undergone and the increased uncertainty many Canadians are facing, these values and expectations have not changed.
The Liberal government remains committed to these values and to securing opportunity for present and future generations, and we have acted accordingly. The first step was to put our fiscal house in oider. Left unchecked, growing interest payments on a burgeoning debt w~uld have steadily consumed our spending and drastically cut our capacity to provide social programs. This possibility was unacceptable to us. Byeliminating our budget deficits, we can stem the flow of public dollars now servic-ing the national debt and put some of that money back into programs that Canadians value.
Achieving fiscal health has meant making tough decisions that have been difficult for many Canadians. But these decisions are paying off.
For the first time in decades, a new era of fiscal stability and growth will enable us to reinvest in the services and programs that are the very
foun-dation of the opportunity and security we value.
The second major task of this government has been to respond to the unease that has developed in recent years regarding some of our key programs. Canada is undergoing aperiod of dramatic economic change. Coupled with the social changes of the past few decades, this transformation has left Canadians concerned that some programs may no longer reflect our values, achieve our goals, or fit within our means.
Canadian Policy Research Networks, a non-profit public policy research organization, recently asked Canadians what core values they believe should underlie Canada's social programs Its report concluded: "Deeply held Canadian values concerning social objectives have not changed dramatically over time, despite new doubts about how to realize values in social programs ... What has changed is certainty that our social programs continue to realize our values. Economic instability has generated concern, anger, ambivalence and questions about affordability and appropriateness of the social safety net." (Exploring Canadian Values: A Synthesis Report, 1995)
We believe that Canada can afford a fair and effective system of social supports, both now and in the future, but reforms are needed.
These include not only changes to existing programs but the introduction of new initiatives to meet the emerging needs that Canadians have identified as priorities. The Liberal government is changing our social supports to fit our values, to do a better job, and to remain affordable. We are making these changes because today's gener-ation deserves the security of knowing that the opportunities all Canadians value will continue to bethere for them and their children.
Ensuring Fairness, Stability, and Security
Canadians value fairness and rely on stability.
They want to know that social services and supports will be there when they need them, regardless of where they live.
The Liberal government is committed to ensuring this fairness and stability. We currently
A new Liberalgovernment will increase funding for the Community Action Program for Children and the Canada Prenatal Nutrition Program by$100 million over the next three years, as announced in the 1997 budget.
provide the provinces and territories with
$35.7 billion annually in equalization payments, cash and tax points through the Canada Health and Social Transfer, and territorial financing to achieve this goal.
The right of all provinces to a fair share of our national resources is enshrined in the Constitution and embodied in federal equaliza-tion payments. Equalization is an unconditional cash payment that enables provinces to provide their residents with comparable levels of public services at reasonably comparable levels of taxa-tion. No conditions are attached to equalization payments, and provinces are free to spend them on programs like health, education, and social services, according to their priorities.
Because this government recognizes that equalization is one of the central pillars of feder-alism, one of our first acts was to renew the equalization program for five years. In 1996-97, we provided $8.5 billion in cash payments to the provinces of Manitoba, New Brunswick,
Newfoundland, Nova Scotia, Prince Edward Island, Quebec, and Saskatchewan.
The federal government also plays amajor role in supporting provincial and territorial health, postsecondary education, and welfare-related programs through the Canada Health and Social Transfer (CHST). Totalling more than
$25 billion annually in cash and tax points, these payments enable the provinces and territo-ries to provide a broad range of services in accordance with their own priorities.
In 1996 the Liberal government legislated a five-year CHST funding schedule guaranteeing that the cash component of the transfer would never fall below $11 billion a year. This repre-sented a floor, not a ceiling. With six provinces expected to balance their budgets or bring in surpluses this year, this five-year funding guaran-tee provided provinces with the additional stability and predictability they need to contine on this course and secure the services that Cana-dians value. Anew Liberal government will raise the CHST cash floor to $12.5 billion beginning in 1998-99 (see page 72).
A Healthy Start forChildren
Supporting families to give Canadian children a good start in life is one of the most important investments Canada can make in its future.
Many families today are struggling to provide their children with the nurture, care, and mater-ial requirements needed for a safe and healthy childhood. High unemployment, the changing nature of work and workplaces, and the increas-ing number of single-parent families and families with both parents working allcontribute to the stress experienced bymodern families.
We cannot afford to deny our children the very things they need to grow and develop early in life, if these same children are to grow into healthy, competent adults. Canadians have made itclear that meeting the needs of low-income families with children is a critical priority, and we are working aggressively to achieve this goal. These problems are complex, however, and will not be solved overnight. They require a concerted effort by federal and provincial governments alike, with the cooperation and support of the private and voluntary sectors and individual Canadians.
Research has proven consistently that investing inearly support for families and chil-dren at risk yields real results. Community-based services playa critical role in helping parents ensure the healthy development of their children.
Byhelping young children get off to a good start and preventing problems before they occur, these programs significantly decrease the need for far greater spending in future.
Anew Liberal government will increase funding for the Community Action Program for Children and the Canada Prenatal Nutrition Program by $100 million over the next three years, as announced inthe 1997 budget. The Community Action Program focuses on children under age six, while the Prenatal Nutrition Program works to decrease the incidence of low-birth-weight babies among high-risk groups of women. This funding will allow more commu-nity organizations to work with families to raise healthy babies and foster sound child development.
CHAPTER " A SUPPORTIVE SOCIETY
I
59Combating Child Poverty
Toomany Canadian children are growing up in poverty. Poor children are at greater risk of permanent developmental setbacks, physical and mental health problems, emotional disturbance, low academic achievement, and delinquency.
The price for growing up in poverty ishigh.
Itmanifests itself in lost opportunity and fewer chances for ahealthy, secure, and happy life. All Canadians pay this high price, as these children often place additional demands on our health, education, social service, and correctional systems asthey grow older.
The federal government currently spends
$5.1 billion annually on support for families with children through the Child Tax Benefit and the Working Income Supplement. About
$3 billion of this goes to low-income families.
The provinces spend an additional $2 billion, mostly in the form of welfare payments and related benefits for children in families receiving social assistance.
More needs to be done, however, including restructuring our federal and provincial
programs to do a better job of supporting low-income working families. Many children in fami-liesreceiving social assistance are better off than those with parents working at low-paying jobs because these families receive child allowances and benefits like drug plans and vision and dental care, while low-income working families do not.
This difference in treatment, known as the
"welfare wall," discriminates against low-income working families, discourages parents from leaving welfare to take jobs, and drives some parents in low-wage jobs to turn to welfare. The federal Working Income Supple-mel1tand provincial measures to help low-income working families only partially offset these effects.
Aconsensus has emerged on the need to replace the current mixed bag of federal and provincial child benefits with a new ational Child Benefit System - a comprehensive, national system of coordinated and effective supports for families at risk. When fully