The Canada Assistance Plan, 1966

The year 1966 was "Come Home Year" in Newfoundland. All those who had gone away to work and live were invited to come back. The government spent time and money to tell people what a great place Newfoundland had become. The newspapers were filled with ads and articles. There were pictures of cars driving down the Trans Canada Highway. There were pictures of healthy, smiling children. There were pictures of fish plants and new places of work. Always, there were pictures of the Premier. He always seemed to be giving out good news and cutting ribbons.

The best piece of news in 1966 had little to do with Premier Smallwood's plans or success stories. That year, the Canada Assistance Plan was passed in Ottawa. It was a new plan to share the costs of social welfare. Each province would share costs with the federal government. This plan brought new and needed money to Newfoundland.

By this time, the Newfoundland government had spent all it could on social services. It had brought in many new services and types of assistance. Money was running out. It would be hard to keep funding the services that were in place. It would be even harder to bring in any new ones.

The province could use the Canada Assistance Plan funds for many things. They could be used for many kinds of social assistance. They could be used for child welfare. They could be used to pay the costs for homes for the aged, and for others who could not live on their own.

The Canada Assistance Plan also helped groups that worked for people with special needs. For example, volunteer groups that worked with disabled people could get funding under the new plan.

With the Canada Assistance Plan, the social safety net grew stronger. This happened in Newfoundland. It also happened in all the provinces in Canada. The Canada Assistance Plan also brought with it a new way of thinking. It said that people should get help and support based on their needs, not on their "means"—what they had. This meant that people should not have to prove they had nothing left before they got help. They should only have to show that what they had could not cover their needs.

What "needs" were was left open. Many things could be thought of as needs. For the first time, medical services, glasses, nursing care, home care and many other things could be paid for.