This House of Commons committee meeting on the Status of Women was a continuation of its study on the abuse and financial vulnerability of senior women. Witnesses appearing were James Janeiro from the Canadian Centre for Caregiving Excellence, Norma Dubé and Joanne Dumas from the Fédération des aînées et aînés francophones du Canada, Elizabeth Brown from Single Seniors for Tax Fairness, Marta C. Hajek from Elder Abuse Prevention Ontario, Patricia McAuliffe from the National Pensioners Federation, and Doris Rajan from the New Society Institute.
James Janeiro stated that one in five older Canadians lives in poverty, with women disproportionately affected, and that nearly half of older female caregivers report financial hardship. He recommended converting the Canada caregiver credit into a refundable tax credit valued at $1,250 per year and reforming the Canada Pension Plan to apply a caregiver’s average earnings to years they were out of the labour market providing care, calling for a national caregiving strategy.
Norma Dubé and Joanne Dumas highlighted that seniors, particularly women, are hard hit by fraud and family violence, with over 100,000 fraud incidents reported in 2024 and a nearly 50% rise in family violence against seniors since 2018. They called for awareness campaigns and noted that francophone seniors in minority communities face additional barriers to accessing services in their language.
Elizabeth Brown argued that solo senior women pay dramatically more tax than couples on the same income due to systemic tax inequities, such as the inability to split pension income. She recommended several tax changes, including a provision to compensate for pension income splitting, higher OAS and age amount clawback thresholds, and a tax-deferred rollover of registered funds on death to any beneficiary, emphasizing that solo seniors are four times more likely to live in poverty than couples.
Marta C. Hajek described financial abuse as a form of gender-based violence that is under-reported and often perpetrated by trusted individuals, with digital fraud creating new risks. She called for stronger systemic first points of contact, reduced barriers to reporting, and investment in prevention through financial literacy and public awareness, and noted that Bill C-16’s definition of coercive control should be broadened to include seniors.
Patricia McAuliffe pressed for four interventions: a federal minister for seniors, independent seniors’ advocates in every province, national standards for long-term care, and support for a UN convention on the rights of older persons. She argued that the 10% OAS increase for those over 75 creates an unjustified gap, as seniors aged 65 to 74 face the same cost pressures, and that the CPI does not reflect seniors’ actual expenses.
Doris Rajan emphasized that marginalized groups—such as racialized, immigrant, disabled, and Indigenous senior women—face intensified vulnerability due to historical systemic exclusion, with poverty rates as high as 20% for disabled seniors. She recommended local, community-led investments and awareness campaigns, and noted that many marginalized seniors are unaware of available benefits, requiring frontline support to access them.
No procedural debate, motions, or votes were recorded in the transcript.
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