2025 Federal Election Weekly Briefing: April 15 – 22 - Construction Association Of Nova Scotia

2025 Federal Election Weekly Briefing: April 15 – 22

Party Policy Announcements

Conservative Party of Canada

The Conservative Party was the final of the major parties to release their platform publicly. The platform covered five key pillars including reducing Canada’s deficit, cutting taxes for Canadians, building 2.3 million homes across the country, strategies to tackle crime, and “Putting Canada First-For a Change.” The plan includes a number of policies to support construction and infrastructure projects across the country.

Axe the Tax to Boost the Economy and Make Life Affordable – For a Change

Axe the sales tax on all new homes under $1.3 million and incentivize municipalities to slash development charges – for a total savings of $100,000 on an average home in Canada’s big cities and $4,500 per year in mortgage payments.
Axe the Underused Housing Tax that costs more to administer than is collected in taxes.

Bring it Home Tax Reform

A Conservative government will launch a Tax Reform Task Force made up of farmers, builders, entrepreneurs, economists, and workers. Their job will be to deliver a simple, fair tax code that
Rewards work and saving.
Closes loopholes for the wealthy and well-connected.
Eliminates unnecessary red tape.
Makes it easier for Canadians to file and understand their taxes.

Unleash Canadian Energy and Resources

Create a National Energy Corridor to rapidly approve and build critical infrastructure and end our energy dependence on America so we can stand up to Trump from a position of strength. This will fast-track approvals for transmission lines, railways, pipelines, and other critical infrastructure across Canada in a pre-approved corridor entirely within Canada, transporting our resources across our country and to the world while bypassing the United States.
Bring in “One and Done” approvals and accelerate priority resource projects. Create a single Rapid Resource Project Office to streamline all regulatory approvals into one application and environmental review, in cooperation with provinces, with a target of six-month decisions and a one-year maximum timeline to reduce delays and duplication.
Repeal the ‘No More Development’ Law (C-69), which makes it impossible to build the mines, pipelines, and other major energy infrastructure Canada needs.
Repeal the West Coast tanker ban (C-48) so Canada can build new LNG terminals to export Canadian energy overseas, ending Canada’s economic dependence on the U.S.
Double oil production in Newfoundland and Labrador, and greenlight the LNG Newfoundland and Labrador project to generate another billion dollars in revenue for Newfoundland’s economy and create thousands of new jobs.
Fast-track B.C.’s LNG Canada Phase 2 and the GNL Quebec LNG project.
Build the road to Ontario’s Ring of Fire and approve federal permits to harvest chromite, cobalt, nickel, copper, and platinum boosting our economy by billions of dollars, allowing us to become less dependent on the Americans, while our allies overseas would no longer have to rely on hostile regimes for these metals, turning dollars for dictators into paycheques for our people.
Unlock arctic ports, approve oil exports from Canada’s Arctic ports, and expand the Port of Churchill to extend the shipping season.
Introduce an optional First Nations Resource Charge to advance economic reconciliation by allowing companies to cede some federal tax room so First Nations communities will no longer need to send all their revenues to Ottawa and then ask for it back, enabling them to take back control of their resources and money.
Create an Indigenous Opportunities Corporation to advance economic reconciliation by allowing Indigenous Peoples to access equity ownership in major resource projects.

Build Critical Infrastructure Faster and Expand Transport Links

Create “Shovel Ready Zones,” which are pre-permitted so projects can break ground immediately.
Fixing Canada’s ports by streamlining regulations permitting, reforming borrowing caps, pre-authorizing future development zones, exploring container shipping on the Great Lakes, extending the shipping season at the Port of Churchill, and reviewing the hours of work regulations for smaller ports.

Unleash Domestic Industry and Innovation

Bring the Premiers together to slash exceptions in the Canadian Free Trade Agreement and boost interprovincial trade within 30 days of taking office.
Introduce a Free Trade Bonus that rewards provinces that lower the trade and labour mobility barriers that cost Canada’s economy billions.

Fight for Canadian Exports and Jobs

Implement a Buy Canadian procurement policy so that federally funded infrastructure and defence projects prioritize Canadian companies employing Canadian workers and using Canadian materials.

Axe the Taxes on Homebuyers and Builders

Axe the GST on all new homes under $1.3 million – saving up to $65,000 in the cost of a new home and $3,000 per year in mortgage payments.
Incentivize cities to reduce development charges with every dollar of relief a municipality offers in development charges reimbursed by 50%, up to a maximum of $50,000.
Scrap the Underused Housing Tax that costs more to administer than is collected in taxes.
Eliminate the Liberals’ new tax on home renovations to support homeowners.
Remove the requirement to report the sale of homes to the CRA.

Build Homes, Not Bureaucracy

Tie infrastructure funding to results, not promises, by rewarding cities that permit over 15% more homebuilding annually, and reducing funding for those that fall short.
Hold back federal dollars from cities that raise building fees or block needed development.
Require cities to publish approval timelines and development charges so Canadians can see how their city is performing compared to others.
Fast-track home building through “Shovel Ready Zones” so new homes can be built faster.
Establish a 60-day standard that CMHC executives must meet for approving or rejecting affordable housing financing applications.
Remove onerous CMHC program eligibility requirements to make it easier for homebuilders to access the benefits of affordable housing funding.
Returning CMHC operating expenses back to 2015 levels.
Identify 15% of federal buildings and lands to sell for housing in liveable new neighborhoods within 100 days.
Simplify and harmonize the National Building Code to make it more affordable to build safely, with maximum flexibility for new materials and new building methods.
Increase housing density around federally funded transit stations as a condition of receiving funding.
Require plain language in housing regulations to eliminate gatekeeping and delay.
Return to a “housing first” approach to eliminating homelessness so that individuals experiencing homelessness can have a stable place to live.
Build 6,000 new homes on Canadian Forces bases and reverse the Liberal rent hike on military families.

Empower First Nations Communities to Prosper

Establish a permanent stream of funding to First Nations under the First Nations Fiscal Management Act.
Provide Indigenous-led housing solutions with direct access to funds.
Rebuild Canada’s Military and Defend the North
Build CFB Iqaluit, Canada’s first permanent Arctic military base since the Cold War.
Build a new Arctic naval base in Churchill, Manitoba.
Rapidly build 6,000 new homes on Canadian Forces bases and reverse the Liberal rent hike on military families.

Restore Order to Immigration

Keep the rate of population growth below the rate of housing growth, job growth, and health care accessibility to ensure sustainable immigration levels that are fair for Canadians and newcomers alike.
Require union LMIA pre-checks, ensuring unions get consulted before employers hire temporary foreign workers to protect Canadian jobs.

Support Labour and Trades

Boosting funding to the Union Training and Innovation Program (UTIP) and expanding it to cover capital investments like training halls.
Pass the Tax Fairness for Travelling Workers Act to allow full tax deductibility for travel.
Working with the provinces to harmonize health and safety rules across jurisdictions to protect workers everywhere.
Reinstating apprenticeship grants and streamlining EI for apprentices.
Creating a Trades Toolkit for high schools.
Requiring banks to recognize apprenticeship credentials for RESP eligibility.

Honour and Support our Veterans

Expand Helmets to Hardhats to connect veterans with skilled trade and construction careers.

Indigenous Prosperity and Ownership

Create a First Nations Resource Charge (FNRC), a refundable tax credit for 50% of payments made by businesses to First Nations for resource wealth and commercial housing.
Support the creation of a Canadian Indigenous Opportunities Corporation, led by Indigenous Peoples, to provide shared equity in resource and industrial projects.
Ensure infrastructure dollars flow directly to communities, not consultants, with a permanent funding stream through the First Nations Fiscal Management Act.
Simplifying and unlocking federal funding for Indigenous housing and community development.
Supporting Indigenous-designed housing programs that meet local needs and respect traditional cultural materials and design.
Including Indigenous communities in national housing targets and infrastructure planning.

Liberal Party of Canada

Following the Leader’s Debates in English and French, Liberal Leader Mark Carney unveiled the party’s platform for voters, promising significant investments in infrastructure, housing, and energy.

One Canadian Economy

Expand Canada’s economy by achieving free trade within Canada to create One Canadian Economy.
Unleash free trade in Canada by Canada Day by tabling legislation to eliminate all federal barriers to interprovincial trade and labour mobility and to remove all federal exceptions under the Canada Free Trade Agreement.
Achieve mutual recognition of credentials with provinces and territories so Canadians can work wherever they want. This includes health professional credentials, professional qualifications in financial services, and trucking safety certifications, amongst others.
Reduce red tape and require all relevant federal departments – such as Transport Canada, Natural Resources Canada, and Innovation, Science and Economic Development Canada – to undertake reviews within 60 days, on steps to eliminate outdated or unnecessary rules, reduce duplication or overlap with provincial rules, and streamline the administration of rules and the delivery of regulatory decisions.
Protect Canada’s economic sovereignty by unlocking projects that grow the economy. Canada’s government will work with provinces and territories and Indigenous Peoples to establish a list of nation-building projects that span provincial and territorial boundaries and deliver major economic and strategic benefits to Canadians.

Nation-building Projects

Invest to build infrastructure that connects Canada, breaks down barriers, and brings people and economies closer together. The Liberals will work with all orders of government and Indigenous Peoples on critical infrastructure that connects communities.
Build new trade infrastructure that connects Canada through the new $5 billion Trade Diversification Corridors Fund, including ports, railways, airports, highways, and other trade enabling infrastructure.
Build the Arctic economy with more ports, highways, railways, and energy infrastructure, with a focus on dual-use infrastructure that grows our economy, reinforces our partnership with Indigenous communities, and secures our sovereignty.
Advance nation-building infrastructure projects through the recently doubled Indigenous Loan Guarantee Program from $5 billion to $10 billion and increasing the sectoral scope.
Build out Canada’s east-west electricity grid, a nation-building transmission project developed with provinces, territories, and Indigenous partners, and stakeholders.
Provide disaster mitigation and recovery funding where infrastructure that connects Canada is under threat. This will help communities get back on their feet after natural disasters that are increasing with climate change.
Build critical health infrastructure like hospitals, clinics, and long-term care facilities by working with provinces and territories.
Build community infrastructure that brings communities together. Liberals will engage with municipalities that make progress on housing first.

Getting Projects Done Faster and Better

Get big projects built quickly by establishing “One Window” project decisions through a Major Federal Project Office and effectively shifting the focus of project review from “why” to “how.” This will enable businesses to navigate regulations more quickly and with fewer redundancies.
Require the new Major Federal Project Office to render final decisions on projects on a maximum two-year timeline, much faster than the former government’s five-year timeline.
Move forward with One Project, One Review. Within six months, we will sign Cooperation and Substitution Agreements with all willing Premiers, as well as Indigenous Governing Bodies, allowing the federal government to recognize provincial, territorial, and Indigenous led assessments.
Advance Indigenous participation in major projects to ensure First Nations, Inuit and Métis rights-holders are a part of Canada’s accelerated push to build.

Buy Canadian

Deploy a made-in-Canada procurement strategy that prioritizes, whenever possible, Canadian suppliers and supply chains, and limiting bidders from foreign suppliers to bidding only on what governments have agreed to in Canada’s Free Trade Agreements. A Liberal government will prioritize Canadian contractors in our defence procurement, including the Canadian aerospace industry. Crown Corporations with major capital acquisitions, like VIA Rail, will also be encouraged to meet this standard.
Establish Buy Canadian standards for federal infrastructure funding including maximizing Canadian steel, aluminum, and forestry products.
Buy Canadian clean by prioritizing Government of Canada purchases to be low carbon emission and when applicable, sustainability certified products and materials.

Arctic Sovereignty and Prosperity

Invest in Northern infrastructure, including a new hydroelectricity project and other energy projects, so that people have access to safe, reliable energy; improve housing stock, accelerate housing development, and meet growing housing demand.

Defending our Economy

Maximize Canada’s steel, aluminum, and critical minerals – from exploration to battery production – to seize this economic opportunity, create higher-paying jobs, and build the strongest economy in the G7.

Improving Access to Health Care

Build hospitals, clinics, and more by investing $4 billion to construct and renovate community health care infrastructure.

Better Mental Health Care

Invest in deeply affordable housing, supportive housing, and shelters in recognition of the link between housing and mental health outcomes. The Liberals will do this through $6 billion invested in the new Build Canada Homes (BCH) which will build and acquire housing.

Support for Families

Require provinces, territories, and municipalities to expand child care in public infrastructure wherever possible, including in schools and community centres, and in community infrastructure that receives federal financing, so families can get child care close to home.
Link child care with housing development on sites that receive federal financing or affordable housing funds. When child care is considered from the start of the development process, it ensures spaces grow alongside communities, saving time and money, and giving more children and families access, earlier.

Young Canadians

Make generational housing investments to double the pace of construction and drive down the cost of homes, rent, and mortgage payments. The high cost of housing has become a barrier to opportunity for too many young Canadians and this plan will help restore the bargain that hard work helps you afford a home.
Provide a new Apprenticeship Grant of up to $8,000 for registered apprentices.

Reconciliation with Indigenous Peoples

Launch a new Indigenous Pathways to Prosperity Skills and Training Fund which will support partnerships between First Nations, Inuit, and Métis communities and organizations, schools, training centres, and colleges to advance access to skills training and education opportunities. This will support the training of more First Nations, Inuit, and Métis doctors, teachers, and builders, amongst other priority areas identified by partners.
Build together with First Nations, Inuit, and Métis communities the critical infrastructure needed all across the country. Predictable funding cycles and getting priority setting closer to community needs is critical to increasing the pace of work and the effectiveness of infrastructure funding.

Building an Economy Everyone Can Afford

Cut the GST for first-time homebuyers on homes up to $1 million. Canadians will save up to $50,000, allowing more young people and families to achieve their dream of homeownership. This will lower upfront costs so Canadians can keep more of their hard-earned money
Fund home retrofits and lower utility bills while making it easier for low- and middle-income households, including renters, to adopt heat pumps and energy efficiency upgrades. Eligible costs could include insulation upgrades, heat pump installation, and window replacements.

Housing

Create Build Canada Homes (BCH) to get the federal government back into the business of building homes.
Cut municipal development charges in half for multi-unit residential housing for five years by working with provinces and territories to keep municipalities whole. These revenues will be offset by federal investment in housing infrastructure like water, power lines, and wastewater systems.
Reintroduce a tax incentive for home builders known as the Multi-Unit Rental Building (MURB), which, in the 1970s, spurred tens of thousands of rental housing units across the country.
Facilitate the conversion of existing structures into affordable housing units.
Build on the success of the Housing Accelerator Fund, further reducing housing bureaucracy, zoning restrictions, and other red tape so that builders only need to navigate one housing market, instead of thirteen.
Speed up approvals by reforming and simplifying national building codes; eliminating duplicative inspections and streamlining regulations for prefabricated and modular housing; leveraging pre-approved, standardized housing designs across all public lands and encouraging the adoption of the designs as-of-right across the country; allowing builders and other orders of government to apply for multiple projects at once; and fast tracking builders who have a proven record with government.
Build federal homes in ways that reduce the risk of costly damages. To protect homeowners and renters from costly flood and wildfire risks, federally supported housing will not be built in areas that are at high risk for floods and wildfires.

Building a Clean Economy and Tackling Climate Change

Kickstart the clean energy supply chain by investing in critical minerals, attracting investment in critical minerals to get them from “rock to road” faster, supporting early-stage mining companies, and supporting thousands of jobs across the supply chain.
Attract, expand, and derisk investments in critical minerals exploration and extraction through the expansion of existing tax credits.
Invest in ourselves by providing funding for projects of national and economic significance and leveraging the Canada Growth Fund to accelerate private investment in Canadian critical minerals projects. This will deliver strong value for taxpayers and make Canada an even more attractive market for investments.
Invest in the prefabricated and modular housing industry to reduce home construction emissions by up to 22% compared to traditional construction methods
Speed up the approval of clean energy projects while upholding environmental rigour and Indigenous rights.

Supercharging Growth

Reduce the cost of investment for Canadian companies and make sure they are internationally competitive by extending immediate expensing for manufacturing or processing machinery and equipment, clean energy generation, energy conservation equipment, and zero-emission vehicles, as well as the Accelerated Investment Incentive.

Workers

Provide a new Apprenticeship Grant of up to $8,000 for registered apprentices.
Increase access to union-led training initiatives by permanently doubling the funding of the Union Training and Innovation Program from $25 million to $50 million. This funding will now support investments in training spaces and classrooms, supporting any of the Red Seal trades.
Establish a new $20 million capital funding stream for colleges to support new training spaces, such as classrooms, for apprenticeships.
Uphold the Apprenticeship Service program to support employers in hiring new apprentices in Red Seal trades, with $5,000 for first-year apprentices and $10,000 for women, people with disabilities, and other underrepresented groups.
Increase labour mobility for skilled trades people between provinces and territories to address labour shortages.

Training and Upskilling Supports

On the campaign trail this week, Carney expanded on his promise that a Liberal government would cover the cost of apprenticeship training by promising that a Carney government would provide a new upskilling and training benefit for workers in the middle of their careers who need to access new skills training for their career stability and success. The plan includes:

Providing up to $15,000 for workers in priority sectors, including manufacturing, health care, construction, A.I. and technology and collaborate with employers to support retention and upskilling within their companies.
Ensuring that Canadian workers impacted by tariffs have the necessary tools to pursue good paying jobs and advance their careers in priority sectors, designing these supports in partnership with labour, employers and industry.
Expand the Labour Mobility Tax Deduction to ensure workers who travel more than 120 km from their home to a job site can deduct their expenses.

Building New Markets for Canadian Goods

Build trade-enabling infrastructure to diversify our trade away from the United States, create new jobs, and build one Canadian economy.

New Democratic Party of Canada

The NDP also released their full platform with investments in housing, infrastructure, and green energy being a major part of the party’s pitch to voters.

Homes for families, not corporate landlords

The NDP will replace the expiring Housing Accelerator Fund with a permanent $16 billion national housing strategy made up of the new Canadian Homes Transfer and the Communities First Fund.
The Canadian Homes Transfer will reward cities that build quickly, allow more townhomes and apartments, and prioritize homes near transit. This is intended to help Canada reach a target of 20 percent non-market housing in every neighbourhood.
The Communities First Fund will support provinces in building the infrastructure needed for growth – like water, transit, and public services.
To deliver this, the NDP will train over 100,000 skilled workers, including new immigrants to Canada and help double the pace of home building and get 3 million homes built by 2030.
The NDP will also offer low-interest public-backed mortgages to support first-time homebuyers.
The NDP will protect renters by enacting rent control and prohibitions on renovictions, demovictions and other potentially predatory landlord practices.
To support the goal of rental protection the NDP will set aside 100% of suitable federal crown land to build over 100,000 rent-controlled homes by 2035, as well as redesigning and expanding the Public Land Acquisition Fund to acquire even more public land to build on. The NDP will also publicly finance new construction with a new Community Housing Bank.
The NDP promised to ban financial landlords from buying any existing purpose-built rental apartments and any of Canada’s existing 650,000 social housing units. They would also cut off handouts – including low-interest federal loans, preferential tax treatment and mortgage loan insurance – for big corporate landlords.
The platform promises to end homelessness by building more affordable homes and new tenant protection measures that will help more Canadians find homes that fit their budgets. The NDP will establish a Housing Insecurity Prevention Benefit to help 50,000 people in critical need find homes.

Lower bills, starting with a cap on grocery essentials

The NDP promised to reduce the costs of energy bills for Canadians with their Home Retrofit Plan that will make it more affordable for Canadians to stay warm in the winter and cool in the summer.
A major home retrofit program will deliver free energy-saving upgrades to 2.3 million low-income households, and offer grants and low-interest loans to 1 million more.
This could include the installation of heat pumps, insulation and other energy efficiency upgrades. It is estimated that in some areas, such upgrades could save a household as much as $4,500 a year.
This measure will be entirely financed by eliminating public subsidies for oil and gas companies, saving $18 billion over ten years.

A stronger and more independent Canada

The NDP platform promises to support Canadian infrastructure and independence by building and buying Canadian.
Overhaul Canada’s procurement policies with a Build Canadian Buy Canadian plan, including banning American companies from contracts if Canadian workers can do them.
Identify shovel-ready infrastructure projects – roads, bridges, transit, community projects and health care capital – and get building, with union workers using Canadian products like steel to get it done.
Boosting investment in infrastructure now will help keep people working, stimulate Canada’s economy when it most needs a boost, and leave communities better off. The NDP would offer Canada Victory Bonds as an opportunity for everyday Canadians to invest in the rebuilding of the economy.
The NDP would also start work on an East-West clean energy grid – a major country-building infrastructure project to deliver affordable, clean and secure energy to people and businesses across the country. The party also promises to eliminate inter-provincial trade barriers, including harmonizing the environmental and health and safety standards.

Supporting a green economy that’s fair for everyone

The NDP promised a number of policies to support Canada’s green economy and investments in green technology.

New Democrats are committed to a Build Canadian, Buy Canadian Plan to boost Canada’s domestic economy and create a stronger and more independent economy. As part of this plan, the NDP would develop sector-specific c industrial strategies for energy, mining, manufacturing, buildings and transportation, with workers at the table every step along the way, with the goal of accelerating Canada’s clean energy transition and attracting new investment in communities across the country.
The NDP would provide additional support to train more workers for tomorrow’s green economy. The goal will be to support good, new jobs in clean industries, and support the decarbonization of essential industries like steelmaking, cement-making, transportation and others.
Local communities should receive the economic benefits and jobs from low-carbon projects. Community Benefits Agreements between community, labour, governments and employers for all federally-funded infrastructure projects will ensure communities get what they need to prosper.
New Democrats recognize that clean electricity will be critical to building a competitive economy that supports people in local communities. They will aim to power Canada with net-zero electricity by 2035, moving to 100% non-emitting electricity by 2045. To support this goal they will bring together provinces and territories to prioritize the building of an East-West interprovincial power grid.
New Democrats will modernize the Energy Efficiency Act, update the National Building Code including cooling requirements and safe maximum indoor temperature limits, and develop an effective federal emissions performance standard for large buildings.
The NDP will work with provinces and municipalities with a goal of doubling public transit ridership by 2035, including expanding the Canada Public Transit Fund to include operations funding. They will also create public, high-speed rail across Canada starting with the Quebec-Windsor corridor and Edmonton-Calgary-Banff.

Putting reconciliation into action

As part of their plan for reconciliation with First Nations communities, the NDP promises to close the infrastructure gap in Indigenous communities.
The NDP will end all long-term boil water advisories on First Nations. To do this the NDP will make new investments in clean water infrastructure and support Indigenous-led water management training programs. They will also fund on-reserve emergency management and prevention, including firefighting.
The NDP will partner with all levels of government to provide sustainable, long-term funding to address the housing crisis. This includes supporting Nunavut’s request to build 3000 homes in the territory by 2030. And they will take a for-Indigenous by-Indigenous approach to housing, significantly boosting the federal government’s commitment to Indigenous housing with billions of dollars in new investments.

A better fiscal approach

The NDP promised to support Canada’s economy with investments in building infrastructure.
Investing in infrastructure in the short-term will help keep people working and help minimize the economic downturn.
This countercyclical boost will have a significant multiplier effect due to the slack in our economy being created by the trade war. Investments in housing, in clean infrastructure, in renewable energy and in arctic infrastructure will also help ready our economy for a strong recovery.
These investments are aimed at supporting Canada’s longer-term project of reducing Canada’s economic exposure to the United States. Additionally, further measures will be taken to improve inter-provincial trade and mobility – including but not limited to health professionals – and to expand trade opportunities with non-US countries.
As part of the NDP Build Canada Plan, the NDP will increase the federal government’s capital investment budget by $10 billion per year—investing in Canada’s productive assets, including ports, rail, highways, and Arctic infrastructure

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