IN TOUCH WITH MP EARL DREESHEN

DECEMBER LEGISLATION UPDATE

December 02, 2011

As the holiday season approaches I am extremely pleased to wish everyone a Merry Christmas and best wishes for the New Year. This is truly a time to enjoy our families and friends and a time to reflect on the past year well looking ahead to 2012.

Although the holidays are just around the corner, we still have much to accomplish in Ottawa and I am pleased to provide an update on some of the legislation and initiatives we are working on to support Canadians.

Bill C-13 the Keeping Canada’s Economy and Jobs Growing Act has passed in the House of Commons and is currently going through the Senate. Bill C-13 implements parts of the budget that was passed earlier in the year. A few of the highlights of that Bill are:

  • the family caregiver tax credit for caregivers of infirm dependent relatives;
  • a volunteer firefighters tax credit to allow eligible volunteer firefighters to claim a 15% non-refundable tax credit based on an amount of $3,000;
  • allows the tuition tax credit to be claimed for eligible occupational, trade and professional examination fees;
  • allows the reallocation of assets in registered education savings plans for siblings without incurring tax penalties;
  • amends the Canada Elections Act to phase out quarterly allowances to registered parties.

The measures in this Bill will have a real affect for Canadian families and I look forward to seeing them implemented. More information on the Bill can be found at http://www.parl.gc.ca/LegisInfo/BillDetails.aspx?Language=E&Mode=1&billId=5145722.

On October 27th, the Honourable Tim Uppal, Minister of State for Democratic Reform, introduced Bill C-20 the Fair Representation Act. Currently, the provinces of British Columbia, Alberta and Ontario are underrepresented in the House of Commons. The Bill will give Alberta 5 more seats and move every single province closer towards representation by population.

Other important Bills continue to move through the process. Bill C-18, the Marketing Freedom for Western Canadian Farmers Act has passed through the House and is currently being debated in the Senate. Bill C-19 the Ending the Long Gun Registry Act, Bill C-10 the Safe Streets and Communities Act and Bill C-26 the Citizens Arrest and Self Defence Act are all going through the process in the House of Commons.

Since receiving a majority mandate in the last election, we have been able to move swiftly to deliver on many of our long standing promises to improve the landscape of Canada. However, there is still much work to be done in order to unlock the true potential of our country. I am honoured to serve as your Member of Parliament and look forward to continuing to work towards our shared goals.

From my family to yours, have a Merry Christmas and Happy New Year.

Yours Truly,

Earl Dreeshen, MP

Red Deer