On November 21st, federal Minister of Finance and Deputy Prime Minister, Chrystia Freeland, tabled the Fall Economic Statement. The Fall Economic Statement provides an opportunity for the federal government to share an update on the country’s current finances and to its highlight its fiscal priorities. The primary theme of this financial update is the government's desire to alleviate affordability and housing concerns while at the same time prioritizing fiscal responsibility and restraint.
The statement features several commitments to housing measures and tax credits, including $15 billion in 10-year low-interest loans pledged to construct 30,000 more rental housing units across Canada. These loans are expected to be repaid and come with little fiscal cost to the government. Spikes in mortgage interest costs represent a key driving factor for inflation, prompting the federal government to respond by implementing a new Canadian mortgage charter that will outline what Canadians can expect from their financial institutions and adjusted rules for homeowners at risk.
This Fall Economic Statement has been described as "tight and focused" and is primarily intended to address the country's affordability crisis. Although inflation rates have cooled to 3.8%, rising living costs continue to represent a significant and pressing concern for Canadians. How this new financial directive from the federal government will intersect with Bank of Canada decisions regarding the status of interest target rates remains to be seen.
Presenting the fiscal update in the House, Minister Freeland said it was designed around two key objectives: addressing affordability for the middle class, and building “thousands upon thousands upon thousands of new homes across the country.”
The government announced an additional $15 billion starting in the 2025-26 fiscal year for the Rental Construction Financing Initiative, now renamed the Apartment Construction Loan Program. These low-interest loans are intended to help finance the construction of 30,000 new homes across Canada.
No new spending on Greener Homes or any other incentive program was included in the update, other than what has already been announced recently: the top ups and price on pollution relief measures announced in connection to the Oil to Heat Pump Affordability (OHPA) program. The statement does indicate, however (without providing any detail) that the government is “considering options to streamline eligibility requirements under the Canada Greener Homes Initiative, including if they currently heat their home with propane or natural gas.” This is something that HRAI has advocated for in its discussions with NRCan so we will explore what this means more specifically for the program.
Despite recent consultation on the matter, there was no new information on the Clean Technology Investment Tax Credits (CTITCs) that were first announced a year ago.
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The federal government will amend the Competition Act in order to prevent manufacturers from refusing to provide the means of repair of devices and products in an anti-competitive manner. Similar “Right-to-Repair” legislation has already been introduced in Quebec, and this could have implications for the HVACR sector.
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The government will expand on the success of the Red Seal Program to improve the mobility of tradespeople and eliminate further barriers, such as duplicative credential recognition. Again details are lacking and more exploration will be needed.
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Working with provinces and territories towards full interprovincial labour mobility for construction workers to meet labour market needs.
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Prohibiting misleading "greenwashing" claims and improving the focus on worker impacts in competition analysis.
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Empower the Commissioner of Competition to review a wider selection of anti-competitive collaborations.
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Broaden the reach of the law by enabling more private parties to bring cases before the Competition Tribunal and receive payment if they are successful.
HRAI will be following up with NRCan and other federal departments to tease out further details on how some of the announced measures will be rolled out.
