GOVERNMENT OF CANADA ANNOUNCES TWO CALLS FOR PROPOSALS FOR PROJECTS HELPING

OP-ED from MP Parm Gill

Canadian seniors have played a central role in building this country. They have earned our respect and admiration, and they deserve our support to help them enjoy the best quality of life possible. That’s why our Government has been working hard for seniors across Canada, providing over $2.8 billion in annual tax relief to seniors and pensioners, implementing pension income splitting and introducing the largest top-up to the Guaranteed Income Supplement (GIS) for the lowest income seniors in a quarter century. Now there is a new opportunity for seniors in communities across Canada to benefit from projects funded through the New Horizons for Seniors Program (NHSP). From May 29 to July 10, 2015, two NHSP calls for proposals will make it possible for organizations to apply for NHSP funding for their projects.

Pan-Canadian projects funded through this call for proposals will help prevent and reduce social isolation among seniors using collaborative approaches that place an emphasis on measurable results. The Government of Canada is partnering with the J.W. McConnell Family Foundation’s Innoweave initiative through its Seniors SI program to support the development, implementation and scaling of these collaborative approaches to reduce social isolation among seniors.  Community-based projects funded through this annual call for proposals will help empower seniors to share their knowledge, skills and experiences with others and support communities by increasing their capacity to address local issues. For more information on the details of each call and how to apply, please visit Canada.ca/Seniors.

Social isolation involves low quantity and quality of contact with others, the absence of social roles and the absence of mutually rewarding relationships. It can be triggered by certain events, such as the loss of a spouse, a change in income or an illness. It is therefore also associated with higher levels of depression and suicide in seniors. The risk of hospitalization is four to five times greater for socially isolated seniors. Social isolation can also leave seniors vulnerable to elder abuse, including financial abuse. Since 2006, the NHSP has funded nearly 15,000 projects in hundreds of communities across Canada, which has made a significant difference in the lives of seniors in local communities like ours. Our Government will continue with our low tax plan to create jobs and growth, bringing forward initiatives like pension income splitting, which has greatly benefitted seniors, and record investments in communities through programs like the New Horizons for Seniors Program.