OTTAWA— Prime Minister Justin Trudeau said his government will close tax loopholes for the rich in the upcoming federal budget, hinting at measures to target tax havens that shelter money for wealthy Canadians.

On the first day of a road trip meant to re-connect him with Canadians and under fire for a swish Christmas vacation on a private island in the Bahamas, Trudeau ate humble pie.

He admitted his government missed warning signs that a new computerized federal pay system was buckling, acknowledged his government has not yet met its promise to restore lifelong disability pensions to injured veterans, and he conceded his preferred option on electoral reform was a ranked ballot, not the proportional representation system recommended by a committee.

But on every contentious issue, including carbon taxes and a national pharmacare program, Trudeau said his government is continuing to work on solutions that will work best for Canadians.

In a meeting room at Kingston’s city hall, Trudeau held court for just over an hour, fielding questions from an overflow crowd.

In the face of one man’s concerns about growing inequality in society, with wealthy citizens reducing tax burden through what he called loopholes on stock options and tax havens, Trudeau said he agreed with the questioner. He signaled moves ahead in the budget.

“On your question on tax fairness I couldn’t agree more obviously and we’re going to have a number of things to say in the upcoming budget,” the prime minister said.

The prime minister touted a $440 million boost in last year’s budget for Canada Revenue Agency (CRA) investigators to probe tax havens, and his government’s changes to tax brackets for middle-income earners and high-income earners. “As you say there is more to do.”

A woman who described herself as a long-time Liberal supporter and donor thanked Trudeau for promising democratic reform, but asked if he believes that “a made-in-Canada proportional representation system is the answer” to replace the first past the post system of electing governments.

Trudeau admitted he is “on record” favouring ranked ballots but said he’s “open to a broad range of perspectives.”

The prime minister was asked if he would fulfill his promise to return the lifelong disability pensions to injured veterans and drop contesting the issue in court.

Trudeau said government had a “sacred trust” to the men and women it sends into conflict zones and added, “We’re going to take care of them when they get home.”

“We can’t fix everything immediately but we have committed to doing that in this mandate,” he said.

Two public servants took Trudeau to task for ongoing problems with Phoenix, the government’s payroll system that has left many employees without their salaries.

One defence department employee said people “should be in jail” for what she branded a “fiasco.” A correctional worker said some people were losing their houses because of the paycheque screw-ups.

Trudeau said people were laid off too early in the process of making the transition to the new pay system and acknowledged his government failed to see the warning signs.

“I’ll admit it. This government in everything we were doing in the first months didn’t pay proper attention or didn’t pay enough attention to the challenges and to the warning signs,” he said.

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The two-day swing through Ontario — similar trips will follow in Quebec, the Prairies and B.C. — is meant to showcase the prime minister mingling with Canadians at a time when he’s under fire for exclusive fundraising gatherings where supporters have forked out $1,500 a ticket to meet him.

But Trudeau told reporters that his grassroots tour demonstrates his “openness and accessibility.”

“We are listening to everyone and that is what Canadians expect from their leadership,” he said.

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