Priorities for Federal election 2025
The federal election will take place on April 28, 2025.
Find out more about how to vote from Elections Canada.
This federal election, let’s call on political party leaders to work towards a future where everyone on these lands will have the means and opportunity to thrive and prosper.
The next government of Canada must ensure a safe and healthy future for all by ending income inequality and moving people out of poverty, ensure everyone has a safe place to live, address climate change, end racism and systemic inequalities, and honour its obligations to Indigenous peoples.
Our Priorities
Access to justice
Access to justice is a fundamental Canadian value and an integral part of a fair and just society based on the rule of law. But factors such as income level, racism and systemic discrimination can limit or prevent access to justice.
- Fully implement “Toward Transformative Change - an Implementation Plan for Canada’s Black Justice Strategy”.
- Create a dedicated racial justice funding stream at the federal Court Challenges Program.
- Invest in access to justice by increasing federal funding for Legal Aid across Canada, and investment in justice department initiatives to support racialized and other disadvantaged communities.
- Introduce a Judicial Strategy to enhance diversity for appointments to the judiciary including judges and decision-makers at all federal tribunals.
Action on climate crisis
The impacts of climate change are affecting everyone in Canada. But these impacts are not felt equitably by everyone. Indigenous, Black and racialized communities are disproportionately affected by the impacts of climate change and environmental hazards, often sanctioned by policy.
- Real and substantive implementation of the “National Strategy Respecting Environmental Racism and Environmental Justice Act (2024)”
Equity in Employment
Equity in employment means everyone will have fair access to employment, opportunities and benefits. Identifying and eliminating systemic barriers in the workplace and in federal government programs and benefits can go a long way in moving everyone closer to equitable employment experiences and outcomes.
- Fully implement the recommendations of the Employment Equity Act Review Task Force - A Transformative Framework to Achieve and Sustain Employment Equity, and add “Faith/Spirituality/Religion” and 2SLGBTQI as “designated groups".
- Apply a consistent equity and racial justice framework and analysis to all federal employment related initiatives, investments, supports, benefits and transfers, including programs such as Employment Insurance.
Health and well-being
Everyone must have fair access to services, supports and opportunities to reach their full health potential. Indigenous, Black and racialized people face disproportionately poorer health outcomes arising from systemic inequities, barriers and discrimination. Health inequities are avoidable and must be eliminated so everyone has an opportunity to thrive.
- Apply a consistent equity and racial justice framework and analysis to all federal health related initiatives, investments, supports, benefits and transfers, to identify and address any inequities and disparities.
- Ensure harm reduction principles, approach, and services are at the foundation of the federal drugs and substance use strategies; and ensure provinces adopt the same approach when receiving federal funding.
Housing and homelessness
Adequate housing is recognized as a fundamental human right in Canada, and everyone should be able to access housing for their needs without discrimination or harassment. Indigenous, Black and racialized people experience disproportionate levels of housing insecurity, under-housing and homelessness.
- Apply a consistent equity and racial justice framework and analysis to all federal housing related initiatives, investments, supports, benefits and transfers to identify and address any inequities and disparities.
- Re-introduce the Canada Housing Benefit for low-income renters, who continue to struggle with the cost of rent weighted against inflation and unemployment.
- Federally mandate that all provinces must enact rent control and implement national standards for renters rights.
- Protect and Expand Affordable and Non-Market Housing.
Immigration
Structural inequities and systemic disadvantages persist in the Canadian immigration and refugee system, despite having a public image as a global leader in refugee resettlement and welcoming immigrants. These disparities are felt most deeply by people at the intersections of diverse identities, particularly those who are Black and otherwise racialized, women and gender-diverse people, 2SLGBTQ+, and people who live with disabilities.
- Make permanent immigration programs that support people leaving situations of violence, including the Temporary Resident Permit Application based on Family Violence and the Application for Permanent Residence based on Domestic Violence.
- Create a Public Complaints and Review Commission (PCRC) to ensure independent oversight of the Canada Border Services Agency.
- Provide permanent residence on arrival for all migrant workers in Canada.
- Create a broad and inclusive immigration status regularization program.
- Withdraw from the Safe Third Country Agreement.
- End immigration detention.
- Increase family reunification by eliminated delays and barriers for all family, including spouses, children, parents and grandparents.
Racial Equity
Indigenous, Black and racialized peoples experience historic and ongoing systemic racism and racial discrimination in virtually every aspect of life, opportunities and outcomes.
- Create an Anti-Racism Act that will name and address all forms of systemic racism and hate, and give a legislative foundation to an independent Anti-Racism Secretariat that reports directly to parliament and has its own budget.
- Fully implement Changing Systems, Transforming Lives - Canada's Anti-Racism Strategy (2024-2028).
- Real and substantive implementation of a fully elaborated Racial Justice Action Plan.
Poverty elimination
More and more people in Canada are sliding into poverty, and facing rising costs and insecurity in housing, food and health and well-being. Indigenous, Black and racialized peoples experience ongoing and disproportionate levels of poverty and have related problems like poor health, lower education and fewer job opportunities. The gap between rich and poor has grown rapidly.
- Apply a consistent equity and racial justice framework and analysis to all federal poverty reduction related initiatives, investments, supports, benefits and transfers to identify and address any inequities and disparities.
- Amend the Income Tax Act by repealing s.122.6(e) which ties eligibility for the Canada Child Benefit (CCB) to the immigration status of the applicant parent. Every parent in Canada who is considered a resident for tax purposes should be eligible for CCB, regardless of immigration status.
- Invest in the Canada Child Benefit (CCB) so that access to these benefits can be expanded to all children living in Canada.
- Allocate funds for women in precarious status leaving abusive relationships. Funds should be available for interim/emergency CCB payments for women leaving abusive relationships while their CCB application is being processe
- Cancel amendments to the Old Age Security Act that limit payment of income-tested benefits (GIS, allowance, allowance for survivor) to sponsored immigrants during the entire length of their sponsorship period to ensure that sponsored low-income seniors have equal access to this poverty reduction measure.
End Gender-Based Violence
182 women and girls were killed by violence in Canada in 2024. Gender-based violence and intimate partner violence is a reality for a growing number of Canadians, particularly women and gender-diverse people. Indigenous, Black, racialized people and migrants face different and unique circumstances and risks arising from historic and ongoing systemic racism and racial discrimination.
- Establish pathways to permanent residence for women and girls with precarious immigration status who are fleeing family violence in Canada.
- Establish a Gender-Based Violence Commissioner - an independent accountability mechanism that will support community-led long-term planning efforts to address and eradicate gender-based violence and to ensure leadership and accountability across parties and election cycles.
- Declare Intimate Partner Violence an Epidemic to acknowledge this pervasive public health and safety crisis and the need for comprehensive solutions and prevention.
- Allocate Canada Child Benefit funds for women with precarious immigration status leaving abusive relationships. Funds should be available for interim/emergency payments for women leaving abusive relationships while their CCB application is being processed.
Download Summary of Priorities - Federal Election 2025 [PDF]
Download Priorities - Federal Election 2025 (long brief with context) [PDF]
Compiled by:
- Colour of Poverty Colour of Change
- Chinese Canadian National Council for Social Justice
- Council of Agencies Serving South Asians
- OCASI – Ontario Council of Agencies Serving Immigrants
- South Asian Legal Clinic of Ontario