A Plan to Grow Our Economy and Make Life More Affordable, the Government of Canada makes targeted and responsible investments to create good jobs, grow our economy, and build a Canada where nobody is left behind.
Today, the President of the Treasury Board, the Honourable Mona Fortier, is in Milton with Adam van Koeverden, Member of Parliament for Milton, to meet with local stakeholders to discuss investments and measures in Budget 2022 to make life more affordable and support businesses. The Minister will spend time with Scott McCammon, President & CEO of the Milton Chamber of Commerce, the Downtown Milton BIA, at a local bakery and visit local business Lumberville to meet workers.
In these meetings, President, Mona Fortier, also will highlight the government's efforts to benefit the people of Milton and make housing more affordable. Budget 2022 housing measures will put Canada on the path to double housing construction over the next decade; help Canadians save for and buy their first home; ban foreign investment in Canadian housing; and curb unfair practices that make housing more expensive for Canadians.
During her tour, the President is focused on measures to boost Canada's long-term growth and create well-paying jobs. Budget 2022 invests in ensuring Canadian workers have the skills they need for the well-paying jobs of today and tomorrow and will make it easier for the skilled immigrants that our economy needs to make Canada their home. The Budget makes further significant investments in affordable childcare, in dental care, in our public health care system, and in advancing reconciliation with Indigenous peoples. Budget 2022 also facilitates the transition to a low-carbon economy by encouraging private sector investments and targeting major sources of emissions.
Canada entered the pandemic with the lowest net debt-to-GDP ratio of all G7 countries-an advantage that has since increased relative to other countries. Canada has seen the best jobs recovery in the G7, and as of March 2022, has recovered 115 per cent of the jobs lost at the height of the pandemic, with an unemployment rate that sits at just 5.3 per cent-the lowest rate on record since 1976. With Budget 2022, Canada will maintain this leading position, and maintain its fiscally responsible approach to economic growth and to building an economy that works for everyone. Crucially, it upholds the government's fiscal anchor-a declining debt-to-GDP ratio and the unwinding of COVID-19-related deficits, which will ensure that Canada's finances remain sustainable in the long-term.
