Canadian Opposition Leadership Candidate Unveils Urban Strategy

In his announcement, Dewar suggests that an NDP federal government would give cities an additional $500 million a year, as a way to get "more bang for the buck" on issues Canadians can relate to. Dewar is

"also proposing to give municipalities a seat at the table whenever federal and provincial governments are negotiating matters that directly effect urban centres. His objective is to establish a 'mature' federal-municipal relationship and provide cities with predictable, stable, permanent funding. Dewar says the needs of cities have been neglected for decades, even though 80 per cent of Canadians live in them.

Under Dewar's urban strategy, federal income support programs, such as Employment Insurance and the Canada Pension Plan, would be extended to cover what he calls 'urban workers' - freelance, part-time, self-employed and contract workers."