Workers to get hand with cost of training

Liberals plan skills-training savings account as part of budget

OTTAWA — The federal Liberal government’s fourth budget will include measures to help Canadians cover their bills if they choose to head back to school to boost their skills or change careers, Finance Minister Bill Morneau said Thursday.

In what will be Morneau’s last fiscal blueprint before this fall’s federal election, the Liberals plan to create a skills-training savings account for adults that’s modelled on one in Singapore, a government source, who was not authorized to speak publicly because the plan is not yet released, told The Canadian Press.

The Singaporean program, launched in 2016, provides every eligible resident over age 25 a $500 credit to use for governmentbacked training courses. Workers over 40 can receive a subsidy of up to 90 per cent for approved courses.

The program sounds similar to a registered education savings plan (RESP) for mid-career adults, but the government has been warned that people who make less money might not save as officials hope, replicating problems the government has tried to overcome in the RESP program.

North Okanagan-Shuswap MP Mel Arnold, a Conservative, said the petition drive was a great initiative and that “I hope the public can follow our lead.”

He noted that former RCMP commissioner Bev Busson, who is now a senator, lives in his riding in Blind Bay.

Foster joked that he didn’t serve in the RCMP because “they didn’t recruit blind people,” but he was a member of the RCMP auxiliary from 1992 to 1997.

“I’m a huge supporter, and many of my family members have served,” Foster said.

Although the RCMP was not directly involved in the petition process, Const. Kelly Brett of the Vernon detachment said she felt honoured.

“Our members work so hard,” she said, “and it’s always nice to be appreciated.”