The Trump tariff storm has rattled Canada’s economy, and our growing NATO defence commitments have driven up federal spending.
Against that backdrop, it’s no surprise that Prime Minister Carney’s first budget is expected to double-down on his election promise to “Build Canada.”
But what about the people who depend on our social safety net just to survive? Where do they fit in?
So far, the government has announced five major projects: an LNG terminal, a nuclear reactor, two mines and a container port. The newly launched Build Canada Homes refers to affordability, but not to accessibility. Defence spending is climbing, with new equipment and higher wages for military personnel.
Yet none of this addresses the reality for the 1 1/2 million people with disabilities in Canada living below the poverty line. That is roughly 16.5 per cent of all disabled Canadians — twice the national average of 8.6 per cent of people without disabilities who are in poverty.
For them, this winter will bring another round of impossible choices: between rent, food, medication and dignity.
Canada can’t only build infrastructure. It must also build people. Yes, large projects create jobs, but they will not reach many Canadians with disabilities who are excluded from the labour market.
In 2024, labour force participation among people with disabilities was just 50.4 per cent, compared with 70.2 per cent for people without disabilities. And for those with the most severe disabilities, the numbers are even worse: only 26.4 per cent were employed. These are the people left to scrape by on inadequate benefits that bring no dignity or stability.
These inequities in the labour market are mirrored in housing. If the government wants to invest in the future, it must start by ensuring that all homes are accessible, not just affordable. Accessibility isn’t optional. Safe housing is the foundation, and it must be designed for everyone.
When homes are built without ramps, wide doorways or adaptable bathrooms, disabled people are shut out from both living and visiting. Imagine being invited to Thanksgiving dinner with family, only to realize you can’t enter the house. The invitations eventually stop. Isolation grows. People disappear. This isn’t the Canada we should be building.
Clare Li, a champion for accessibility, showed us what inclusion truly means. Clare was the only non-dancing member of Ill-Abilities, a central figure in Air Canada’s accessibility team and a leader within Disability Without Poverty.
In October 2022, Clare and I stood together at our Ottawa rally. She was visibly nervous — her hands shook as she prepared to speak publicly, in English and French, for the first time. What I didn’t know then was that when Clare had been diagnosed with breast cancer, she had promised herself she would say “yes” to every opportunity that came her way, including that speech on Parliament Hill.
Clare passed away this past September, after her seventh line of chemotherapy failed. Her life was far too short, but it was filled with courage, purpose and a resounding “yes.” She embodied the principle that inclusion isn’t charity — it’s justice. And she showed us that when barriers are removed, disabled people contribute, lead and inspire.
At Disability Without Poverty, we want more disabled people to be able to say yes — to opportunities, to their potential, to life itself. But the reality is that too many are forced to say no. No to medications they can’t afford. No to housing that is out of reach or inaccessible. No to jobs or education because of systemic barriers.
This is why we are launching the Clare Li Memorial Research Collective. This will support research into disability and poverty in Canada, helping us shine a light on the gaps, solutions and the urgent need for action.
Research isn’t abstract — it’s the foundation for policy change. We need stronger data on the daily realities of disabled Canadians in poverty: how many are forced to choose between food and medicine, how many live in inaccessible housing, how many are excluded from community life? This knowledge is power and it will fuel the push for policy that lifts people up instead of leaving them behind.
Canada, we can’t do this without you. If “Build Canada” is truly to be our national project, it must mean more than steel, concrete and weapons. It must mean fixing the holes in our social safety net and lifting people up so they too can say yes — to dignity, to inclusion, to possibility.
The next budget can’t just build things. It must build people.
Michelle Hewitt is chairperson of the board of Disability Without Poverty and lives in Kelowna.
