Editing Louis St. Laurent (section)

=== Social and economic policies ===
[[File:Louisstlaurent.jpg|175px|thumb|right|St. Laurent, 1950]]
It took taxation surpluses no longer needed by the wartime military and paying back in full Canada's debts accrued during the World Wars and the Great Depression. With remaining revenues, St. Laurent oversaw the expansion of Canada's social programs, including the gradual expansion of social welfare programs such as family allowances, old age pensions, government funding of university and post-secondary education and an early form of [[Medicare (Canada)|Medicare]] termed ''Hospital Insurance'' at the time. This scheme laid the groundwork for [[Tommy Douglas]]' healthcare system in Saskatchewan, and Pearson's nationwide universal healthcare in the late 1960s. Under this legislation, the federal government paid around 50% of the cost of provincial health plans to cover "a basic range of inpatient services in acute, convalescent, and chronic hospital care." The condition for the cost-sharing agreements was that all citizens were to be entitled to these benefits, and by March 1963, 98.8% of Canadians were covered by ''Hospital Insurance''.<ref name="Guest">The emergence of social security in Canada by Dennis Guest</ref> According to historian Katherine Boothe, however, St. Laurent did not regard government health insurance to be a "good policy idea", instead favouring the expansion of voluntary insurance through existing plans. In 1951, for instance, St. Laurent spoke in support of the medical profession assuming "the administration and responsibility for, a scheme that would provide prepaid medical attendance to any Canadian who needed it".<ref>{{Cite book | url=https://books.google.com/books?id=N9BtBwAAQBAJ&pg=PA62 |title = Ideas and the Pace of Change: National Pharmaceutical Insurance in Canada, Australia, and the United Kingdom|isbn = 9781442648630|last1 = Boothe|first1 = Katherine|date = January 2015| publisher=University of Toronto Press }}</ref>

In addition, St. Laurent modernized and established new social and industrial policies for the country during his time in the prime minister's office. Amongst these measures included the universalization of old-age pensions for all Canadians aged seventy and above (1951),<ref>Gray agendas: interest groups and public pensions in Canada, Britain, and the United States by Henry J. Pratt</ref> the introduction of old age assistance for needy Canadians aged sixty-five and above (1951),<ref>Facts of life: the social construction of vital statistics, Ontario, 1869–1952 by George Neil Emery</ref> the introduction of allowances for the blind (1951) and the disabled (1954),<ref name="Guest"/> amendments to unemployment insurance in 1953 (which provided for the payment of unemployment insurance benefit to insured persons incapacitated for work due to injury or illness),<ref>[https://babel.hathitrust.org/cgi/pt?id=mdp.39015033597694&seq=1325Canada Year Book 1954 P.1257]</ref> 
amendments to the National Housing Act (1954) which provided federal government financing to non-profit organisations as well as the provinces for the renovation or construction of hostels or housing for students, the disabled, the elderly, and families on low incomes,<ref name="Guest"/> and unemployment assistance (1956) for unemployed employables on welfare who had exhausted (or did not qualify for) unemployment insurance benefits.<ref>In pursuit of the public good: essays in honour of Allan J. MacEachen by Tom Kent and Allan J. MacEachen</ref> Aid to farmers adversely affected by crop failures was improved, while grants to universities were doubled.<ref>[https://babel.hathitrust.org/cgi/pt?id=uc1.$b139158&seq=14 Liberal action for a greater Canada: speaker's handbook, federal general election, 1957, P.106]</ref> 

In 1954 a government scheme for insuring fishing vessels was established, while the following year a Fisheries Improvement Loan Act was introduced under which government guaranteed loans at 5% were provided to fishermen via the chartered banks.<ref>[https://babel.hathitrust.org/cgi/pt?id=uc1.$b139158&seq=14 Liberal action for a greater Canada: speaker's handbook, federal general election, 1957, P.110]</ref> That same year a Women’s Bureau was set up to work on projects aimed at improving the position of female workers.<ref>[https://babel.hathitrust.org/cgi/pt?id=uc1.$b139158&seq=14 Liberal action for a greater Canada: speaker's handbook, federal general election, 1957, P.232]</ref> In 1956, equal pay was introduced in the federal civil service.<ref>[https://babel.hathitrust.org/cgi/pt?id=uc1.$b139158&seq=14 Liberal action for a greater Canada: speaker's handbook, federal general election, 1957, P.246]</ref> In 1955 a measure was introduced aimed at maintaining gold mine employment in communities depending on this industry.<ref>[https://babel.hathitrust.org/cgi/pt?id=uc1.$b139158&seq=14 Liberal action for a greater Canada: speaker's handbook, federal general election, 1957, P.184]</ref> Improvements were also made in benefits for veterans and their dependents.<ref>[https://babel.hathitrust.org/cgi/pt?id=uc1.$b139158&seq=14 Liberal action for a greater Canada: speaker's handbook, federal general election, 1957, P.269-270]</ref> Discrimination was also banned by the 1953 Fair Employment Practices Act and in 1957 unemployment insurance was extended to fishermen.<ref>[https://babel.hathitrust.org/cgi/pt?id=uc1.$b139158&seq=14 Liberal action for a greater Canada: speaker's handbook, federal general election, 1957, P.239]</ref> Improvements were also made in superannuation arrangements.<ref>[https://www.canada.ca/en/treasury-board-secretariat/services/pension-plan/plan-information/public-service-pension-plan-history.html Public Service Pension Plan History]</ref>
 
St. Laurent's government also used $100&nbsp;million in death taxes to establish the [[Canada Council]] to support research in the arts, humanities, and social sciences. In 1956, using the taxation authority of the federal level of government, St. Laurent's government introduced the policy of "[[Equalization payments in Canada|equalization payments]]" which redistributes taxation revenues between provinces to assist the poorer provinces in delivering government programs and services, a move that has been considered a strong one in solidifying the Canadian federation, particularly with his home province of [[Québec]].

In 1957, St. Laurent's government introduced the [[Registered retirement savings plan|registered retirement savings plan (RRSP)]], a type of financial account used to hold savings and investment assets. The plan had many tax advantages and was designed to promote savings for retirement by employees and self-employed people.