Deficits, Debt & Disappointment

 Deficits, debt & disappointment  t’s been said that Tory times are since the Great Depression unless we tough times. The latest feder- spent heavily. This is rubbish. al budget proves this to be true In reality, unemployment is up for Canadian taxpayers. With Mr. to just 6.6% from last year’s histor- HarperI in power, taxpayers thought they ic low of 5.8%. Worst expectations had a federal government interested place it rising to 8%. This pales in in keeping its promises; a government by Kevin comparison to the 14% unemploy- that would control spending, balance ment suffered in the recessions of the budget and break the decades-long Gaudet the 80’s and 90’s. Interest rates were Federal Director Stephen Harper habit of overspending. We were wrong. more drastic then as well, approach- When the Liberals left office program spend- ing 10% in the 90’s and almost 20% in the Paul Martin 2006-2014 ing stood at $175-billion. By the end of this 1980s. Today, they are below 5%. The econo- 2004-06 Debt: $541.9 bilion fiscal year, it will have grown to $229-billion my (GDP) is flirting with zero growth, nothing — a 31% increase in the size of government like the 43% contraction in the 1930’s. Debt: $481.5 billion 12.6% increase in just four years. In essence, an acorn fell on Canada’s head, 4.7% decrease (est) The 2009 federal budget brought back but Parliament responded as if the sky was big spending in a big way. Not only does this falling. This Chicken Little approach be- spending spree waste your money, it will also trayed the government’s promises of a bal- steal your childrens’. The Harper government anced budget, debt repayment, and prudent plans to rack up an astonishing $85-billion fiscal management. One would think this Canada’s Debt in new debt in just five years. Eight years of country had learned the lessons of unchecked debt reduction will be wiped out with this one debt. Because of our past excesses, the fed- budget. eral government is spending $84-million a day in interest Mountain payments. How did it happen? Pierre Trudeau Doubtless, part of the reason lies in threat- ening tactics by the coalition of opposi- 1968-79 1980-84 tion parties, with the flames fanned by end- Debt: $157.2 billion less media indoctrination. Every news chan- nel and nearly every newspaper in the 738.7% increase country warned that Canada risked an economic meltdown unheard of Joe Clark 1979-80 Lester Pearson Debt: 1963-68 $77.4 billion Brian Mulroney Jean Chretien Debt: $18.75 billion 18.3% 1984-94 1994-2004 19.6% increase increase Debt: $487.5 billion Debt: $496.2 billion  67.7% increase 1.8% increase

24 25 Most provinces special interests have an annoying ten- Projected Deficits ($ Billions) }Your CTF has pay millions more are all too happy dency to become per- launched each day. Does it 2008/09 2009/10 2010/11 2011/12 2012/13 to encourage gov- manent—a prospect all www.debtclock.ca to make sense to add ernment to “stimu- the more likely given the 1.1 33.7 29.8 13.0 7.3 draw public attention to this burden? late the economy” pressures of a minority all the while with Parliament. Now that the to the dangers of ex- cessive public debt and The truth about the “stimulus” their hands out. spending taps have been turned on, it will difficult build support for bal- Eleven straight years of surpluses and “Temporary” Spending? to turn them off again. anced budgets. Please debt reduction have been swallowed by a gi- The government plans go to the site, sign the This year’s program spending is budgeted ant plunge into deficits. Canada, like much of to return to surplus in five petition and forward to to be $229-billion—the first time Ottawa has Europe, is now embracing the Bush-Obama years. But this will only be your contacts. ever broken the $200-billion barrier. Worse, ~ economic doctrine of “stimulating” the econ- possible if its rosy revenue omy here or “injecting” the economy there as this 11% increase will be fully-funded by bor- projections come true and budget is the rise in though it were as simple as waving a magic rowed money. it is able to restrain spend- income tax thresh- wand. Once government opened the wallet for Big ing growth. olds. Newsflash: Governments don’t have any Auto the line-up of organizations seeking priv- The basic personal money of their own. They get it through tax- ileged access to taxpayer money grew longer. exemption jumped from $10,100 to $10,320. es taken today or taxes taken tomorrow from The budget throws cash at aerospace, auto, Regional Also, the lowest two tax brackets saw their our children ... plus interest! forestry, mining, ship-building, “regional de- development sinkholes threshold’s hiked from $38,832 to $40,726 Of course, big business, big labour and velopment,” slaughter houses and more. The Budget 2009 adds $2-billion to regional de- (15% bracket) and from $77,664 to $81,452 only letter missing from this alphabet soup of velopment programs. Half of this total will go organizations is ‘Z’ for zoos. Hmmm ... maybe (22% bracket). to the “temporary” new Southern Ontario De- Raising these thresholds means more in- we shouldn’t be giving them any ideas. velopment Agency (SODA). As well, anoth- And although cash has been thrown in eve- come is taxed at a lower bracket. This meas- er $50-million over five years will go to a new ure is broad-based and provides modest re- ry direction, much of it will land in Ontario. northern development agency. The province will see an $878-million annual lief for the average Canadian family. It is a Prime Minister Harper used to be a very vo- tax change your CTF had been calling for and increase in transfer for health care, $347-mil- cal opponent of these programs and promised lion more per year for equaliza- represents a small victory for the CTF and for to reduce them. Instead, he has embraced taxpayers. tion payments, new railway tacks, them and created new ones. These programs $350-million for Atomic Energy of don’t work. They merely provide another Canada (located outside Toronto), channel for taxpayer cash to be shovelled to Looking forward and a new $1-billion “temporary” re- questionable businesses with little or no re- All the talk of “temporary” this and “tem- gional development agency for south- turns. They are inherently subject to political porary” that is bunk. Without enormous pub- ern Ontario (including Toron- pressure and have, in the past, been nothing lic pressure the country will once again spiral }Of to!). more than political pork-barreling. into prolonged deficits, a permanent increase course, big The budget also includes a in the size of government and eventually, high- business, big la- “temporary” increase in Em- er taxes to pay for it all. bour and special in- ployment Insurance (EI) pay- Modest Tax Relief Moreover, the first baby boomers are now ments from 45 to 50 weeks. terests are all too happy The Deputy Minister of Finance argued retiring and the costs of health care and so- There is $12-billion for new cial security are about to explode. We can ill to encourage government during budget consultations, attended by your infrastructure spending, afford this. to ‘stimulate the economy’ CTF, that temporary tax measures don’t work. $225-million for rural high- To that end, your CTF has launched all the while with their hands Nevertheless, the government introduced a out.~ speed internet, and anoth- www.debtclock.ca to draw public attention to er $1-billion for regional de- $2.5-billion home renovation tax credit as the dangers of excessive public debt and build velopment agencies for “com- part of its budget. This is a 15% credit for support for balanced budgets. Please go to munity restructuring” due to renovation expenses over $1,000 up to a max- the site, sign the petition and forward to your economic hardship. imum credit of $1,350. contacts. “Temporary” government programs The only glimmer of good news in the Taxpayers can ill afford not to take action!

26 27