She is a 38-year-old mother of four and lives in Burlington, Ont. Like many other Canadians, she has had to make tough choices about how she spends her money. “It’s a juggling act,” she said in an interview with CBC’s The House that aired Saturday. In addition to the cost of feeding and caring for her children, a low-dose chemotherapy treatment for stage 1 cervical cancer is another challenge for the freelance writer. Inflation in July rose 7.6% in July compared to the same period last year. It was the first month-over-month drop since 2021, but the cost of living is still taking a bite out of Anderson’s budget — and she’s hoping for help from politicians. LISTEN | Which party has the best plan to fight inflation? CBC News: The House 17:09 Which party has the best plan to fight inflation? Missy Anderson, mother of four, talks about her struggle to cope with the cost of living, and experts Trevor Tombe and Sean Speer discuss the politics and policy of possible solutions. “They have to understand how the average Canadian lives. They’re offering benefits that I think sound good — things like a one-time $500 rent assistance,” Anderson told host Catherine Cullen. “If you’re in that area, that’s not going to help you much. That’s like two trips to the grocery store.” Anderson is hoping for more help as soon as possible. The federal government this week announced new measures aimed at helping the affordability challenge, including the rental allowance described by Anderson, as well as increased GST credits and a new dental benefit. “These are things that will make a difference in people’s lives right now, but they’re sufficiently targeted that they won’t contribute to higher inflation,” Prime Minister Justin Trudeau said. Opposition leader Pierre Pouliev, however, argued the plan would “add fuel to the fire” of inflation. Scotiabank’s head of financial capital markets, Derek Holt, also criticized the government for spending more.
There are no easy solutions for short-term pain
Trevor Tomb, an economist at the University of Calgary, told The House that the recently announced measures are unlikely to have a significant impact. However, he noted that it may be difficult to tackle the underlying problem of inflation quickly, so one of the things that governments need to be honest about is to “recognize clearly and explicitly that there is not much that can be done in the very short term “, he said. Much of the inflation is driven by global factors and high energy prices, Tombe said, on which government policies around spending or transport may have limited impact. The rate hike from the Bank of Canada will also take time to affect inflation, Tombe noted. Bank of Canada Governor Tiff Macklem walks outside the Bank of Canada building in Ottawa on June 22, 2020. Economist Trevor Tombe says interest rate hikes will take time to reduce inflation. (Blair Gable/Reuters) Sean Speer, a senior fellow at the Munk School of Global Affairs and a former economic policy adviser to Stephen Harper, agreed that long-term planning was needed to comprehensively address the major challenges facing Canada today. “I don’t think we’ve heard enough from the government either about short-term plans to boost supply, but more important long-term plans. There are too many areas where we’re supply-constrained: health care, housing, energy,” he said.
NDP claims victory over benefits announcement
Speer noted that Poilievre has benefited from being ahead of the inflation issue, and there may be a battle now over the federal carbon tax. “While the purpose of the carbon tax is to raise prices over time, over the past 12 months there has been such a significant increase in energy prices that it risks accelerating the increases sought by the carbon tax even faster,” he said. NDP Leader Jagmeet Singh told The House that the new announcement – which he is touting as a major victory – will help lower costs for Canadians by reducing the burden of dental costs while other prices remain high. LISTEN | NDP Leader Jagmeet Singh talks new gains, Poilievre’s win: CBC News: The House 9:31 Jagmeet Singh slams dental plan as fight for working-class vote heats up NDP Leader Jagmeet Singh talks about new federal measures announced this week aimed at easing the issue of affordability and reacts to the election of Pierre Poilievre as Conservative leader. But he said the dental benefit is only a temporary program. He told The Canadian Press that his party will no longer be flexible with the government on this issue and expects a full schedule next year. But Missy Anderson is looking for action now, not future promises. “People have kids, people work hard every day and can’t afford their bills. We need something to start happening.”
