The latest Statistics Canada data shed light on rising economic inequality in Canada as the federal election gets underway.
Extreme inequality is fueled both by the superrich at the very top and growing divides in the housing market amid a shortage of homes. These inequalities damage our economy and social fabric, lower economic growth, worsen health and social outcomes, and distort democracy and politics.
The need to curb growing inequality is a critical conversation to have in the federal election. As the country confronts a trade war and threats of annexation from the United States, Canadians have something to fight for in this moment.
Canada can chart its own path — different from the colossus to the south.
Canadians can fight for a country that stands up for the rights of all, share the wealth, invest together in homes, schools and health care, and build a stronger society and economy in the process. Doing this requires confronting the wealthy and powerful rather than letting them dominate the policy agenda.
Two facets of economic inequality stand out in Canadian data today: the chasm of inequality between the superrich and everyone else — the 99 percent versus the 1 percent — and the divide between the haves and have-nots of the housing crisis that has left homes scarce and expensive across the country.
One recent set of inequality data comes from Statistics Canada’s Distributions of Household Economic Accounts. The latest numbers show a near-record gap in the share of disposable income — 46.9 percentage points — held by Canadian…
Auteur: Alex Hemingway
