Terry Fox on the $5, big money for the border — what we learned from the economic statement | CBC News

The Liberal government unveiled $21.1 billion in new spending in its fall economic statement (FES) Monday — much of it going to border security and the promised GST tax break.

The FES also announces some lower-profile policy and spending decisions. Here are five things you need to know:

Combating auto theft

The federal government has estimated that 90,000 vehicles are reported stolen every year in Canada. The Insurance Bureau of Canada (IBC) reports that in 2022 alone, 105,000 vehicles were stolen across the country.

The Canada Border Services Agency (CBSA) says thefts were down in 2024 by almost a fifth, but the Trudeau government has said combating auto theft remains a policy priority.

The FES includes a few measures to deal with auto theft, including a promise to amend the Criminal Code to make bail and sentencing laws stricter.

The FES sets aside $1.3 billion to help secure the border. The document says that some of that money will help authorities crack down on trafficking in stolen vehicles, drugs and guns at the border.

The government said it will also amend the Customs Act to give the CBSA additional powers to inspect goods destined for export.

“This will include obligating warehouse operators and shippers to provide adequate accommodations for CBSA officers to carry out their mandate,” the FES says.

Terry Fox on the $5

The FES says the federal government is putting Canadian hero Terry Fox on the new $5 bill to honour his Marathon of Hope and his efforts to raise money for cancer research.

“By February 1981, the Marathon of Hope had raised $24.7 million or $1 for every Canadian,” the FES says. “His run was interrupted just past the half-way point when the cancer reached his lungs, and ultimately took his life.

“Through his efforts, the 22-year-old showed Canadians the difference that an ordinary person could make through sheer willpower and determination.”

Former Liberal prime minister Sir Wilfrid Laurier will be moved from the $5 bank bill to the next version of Canada’s $50 bill.

Women’s reproductive health

The Liberal government announced $90 million in funding over six years, and then $20 million per year after that, to improve access to abortion and reproductive health services.

“Across the country, anti-choice groups are working to restrict a woman’s right to choose what’s best for her body,” the FES says. “In rural, remote and other under-served communities, access to sexual and reproductive health services is often limited.”

The $90 million will flow through the Sexual and Reproductive Health Fund, expanding the fund and making it permanent. Created in the 2021 budget with a $45 million investment, the fund was renewed two years later with an additional $36 million investment. 

The $90 million in new money will help the fund support community-based organizations in their efforts to improve access to abortion and other sexual and reproductive health care services.

The Liberal government is also setting aside $7.5 million over four years to help Statistics Canada conduct new research on sexual and reproductive health and rights.

Divesting Air Canada stock

During the pandemic, when airliners were barely flying and international travel came to a standstill, the federal government invested $500 million in Air Canada and loaned the airline an additional $1.4 billion to ensure it survived.

On top of that, the federal government was also given share purchase warrants that allowed the federal government to buy shares at a pre-set price in the future.

“The government has always stated it does not intend to be a long-term shareholder of Air Canada and that the shares would be divested when appropriate,” the FES said.

The FES says that the federal government has now sold its $500 million equity stake in the airline for $543 million. It says that, combined with the $82 million the purchase warrants were sold for in 2022, the federal government made a profit of $125 million.

The FES says that Air Canada will repay the outstanding balance of $1.27 billion on its loan by 2028.

No sign of $250 cheques

In November, Prime Minister Justin Trudeau announced that his government would be giving taxpayers a GST/HST holiday on the cost of some essential goods.

At the same time, Trudeau also offered to send $250 rebate cheques to the 18.7 million people in Canada who worked in 2023 and earned $150,000 or less.

NDP Leader Jagmeet Singh said the measure should have been extended to help those who did not work and retirees who said they felt abandoned by the government’s latest inflation relief measure.

Singh, who ended his party’s governance and supply agreement with the Liberals earlier this fall, promised to withhold support if the government didn’t split the promises into two pieces of legislation.

The Liberal government stripped the $250 cheques from the tax break legislation and the two-month GST/HST holiday passed through Parliament and received royal assent earlier this month.

Many expected that the $250 pledge would resurface in the FES, but the document does not contain any mention of the measure.