A Canadian flag flies in front of the Peace Tower on Parliament Hill in Ottawa, Ontario, Canada, March 22, 2017. REUTERS / Chris Wattie / File Photo
Canada will present on Monday a budget with billions of dollars for pandemic remedies as COVID-19 infections skyrocket, C $ 2 billion ($ 1.6 billion) for national childcare and new taxes on luxury goods.
Liberal Prime Minister Justin Trudeau’s first budget in two years will also set aside C $ 12 billion ($ 9.6 billion) to extend wage and housing benefit programs through the fall, the Toronto Star reported Sunday.
Finance Minister Chrystia Freeland will present the budget around 4:00 pm (2000 GMT).
The document promises more than C $ 2 billion as a “starting point” for a national childcare program, the Canadian Broadcasting Corp. said, adding that the federal deficit for 2020-2021 was below C $ 400 billion.
In November, the government forecast a deficit of C $ 381.6 billion, the highest level since World War II. [https://tmsnrt.rs/3wSJPcm]
The budget will also include a luxury tax in effect from 2022 on new cars and private planes worth more than C $ 100,000 ($ 79,970), and boats worth more than C $ 250,000, government sources familiar with the document said. to Reuters. L1N2MB0LV
From July, there will be a sales tax for online platforms and e-commerce warehouses, and from 2022 a tax on digital services for web giants such as Google (GOOGL.O) and Facebook Inc (FB.O) from Alphabet Inc.
Freeland pledged up to C $ 100 billion in stimulus packages over three years in November to “jump-start” an economic recovery during what is likely to be an election year, and the government has not backed out of that commitment so far. read more
Environment Minister Jonathan Wilkinson confirmed in a conversation with the CBC that the budget would be ‘ambitious’ and that the government would ‘invest in jobs and growth to rebuild this economy’, although he added that there were ‘fiscal barriers’ would be to put in money. a “sustainable track”.
Amid a rising third wave of infections, Canada’s most populous province, Ontario, announced new public health restrictions on Friday, including closing provincial borders to non-essential domestic travel. read more
Canada has stepped up its vaccination campaign, but still has a smaller percentage of its population vaccinated than dozens of other countries, including the United States and Great Britain.
($ 1 = 1.2514 Canadian dollars)
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