Government accomplishments

June 26, 2009

Over the last session of Parliament, your Conservative government has been acting to keep Canada on the right track for a strong recovery.  In fact, while our country is one of the least affected by the global recession, our government is among those doing the most to combat the effects.  This is clearly demonstrated by the fact that 80% of our Economic Action Plan was implemented in only 72 days!

Our Conservative Government has and will continue to recognize the economic challenges we face. That’s why we have tirelessly and aggressively worked to protect our economy and why we continue to work with our global partners on a global solution to a global recession.

What’s more, since its January introduction, we have succeeded in helping Canadians by aggressively implementing our Plan through the following measures:

• reducing taxes permanently;
• helping the unemployed through new training programs and 5-weeks of extended EI;
• avoiding layoffs by enhancing the EI work-sharing program ;
• maintaining and creating jobs through a massive infrastructure spending ;
• improving infrastructure at colleges and universities ;
• supporting research and technology ;
• supporting industries and communities most affected by the global recession ; and
• improving access to and the affordability of financing for Canadian households and businesses.

Canada’s Economic Action Plan is a plan to create jobs, put money into local economies, and protect vulnerable workers and communities during these tough economic times.  Our Action Plan has indeed helped Canadians during these difficult economic times, and is a clear way of stimulating the economy, protecting Canadian jobs and supporting those who have been hit hardest by the recession.  It is delivering $62 billion in stimulus, which is also among the largest of the G-7 economies.

I am proud that one of the major accomplishments we achieved has been to reduce the tax burden for Canadians.  Some of the key measures in reducing tax burdens include increasing the amount of income Canadians can earn before paying federal income taxes or facing higher tax rates.  We enhanced the Working Income Tax benefit to further strengthen work incentives, and we increased the Age Credit to make retirement more affordable.  We are also providing substantial tax relief for Canadians who invest in their homes and for first-time home buyers.

Actions taken by the Conservative Government since we took office in 2006, including those proposed in the Economic Action Plan, will reduce taxes on individuals, families and businesses by an estimated $220 billion over 2008–09 and the following five fiscal years. Of this amount, the tax relief proposed in the Economic Action Plan totals more than $20 billion!

Due to the rise in unemployment rates, more Canadians are accessing EI benefits.  Total EI support is now expected to be $5.5 billion higher this year.  Key initiatives in this area from Canada’s Economic Action Plan include providing EI recipients with up to an extra 5 weeks of EI benefits—worth up to an additional $2,235 per recipient. We are delivering EI benefits on a more timely basis by engaging more staff to process claims and respond to enquiries from Canadians, and by extending the hours of operation of EI call centres. Our Government is also extending the duration of work-sharing agreements to a maximum of one year, which protects even more jobs by allowing workers to work a reduced work week and receive EI benefits on the days they do not work.

Thanks to our government’s smart investments, out-of-work Canadians now have easier access to EI.  They are receiving EI benefits sooner and they are eligible for EI benefits for a longer period of time.  We are doing all of this without increasing the payroll tax burden on workers and businesses.

The Government has also accelerated existing funding for large strategic projects.  More specifically, over $1.7 billion in federal funding has been committed to more than 50 large strategic projects since January 2009.  Furthermore, through our Economic Action Plan, we are working with provinces and territories in order to accelerate access to provincial/territorial base funding.  For instance, we created a $4 billion infrastructure stimulus fund to support construction-ready projects in all regions of Canada, we have additional support to the Communities Component of the Building Canada Fund and we have invested in a $1 billion Green Infrastructure Fund.

This is helping create — and keep — more jobs in construction and manufacturing, two industries that have been hardest hit by the downturn. That means more money in Canadians’ pockets and, in turn, more money flowing through other parts of the economy too. In fact, for every dollar we invest in infrastructure spending, $1.60 in economic activity is created.

Support for higher-education research continues to be a key priority of the Science &Technology Strategy.  In fact, Canada ranks first in the G7 and second among member countries of the Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD), in its support for university and college research as a percent of Gross Domestic Product. 
Some of the measures announced in Budget 2009 include:

• $750-million investment in the Canada Foundation for Innovation (CFI) to support high-end research equipment, labs and facilities;
• $50 million to support the construction and establishment of the Institute for Quantum Computing based at the University of Waterloo; and the Canadian Space Agency will receive $110 million over three years to work with the private sector to undertake research and develop new space-based technologies. 

I am proud to say that in our previous three budgets, this government has increased funding for S&T-related activities by $2.4 billion!

In addition to strengthening Canada’s economy, your Conservative Government is listening to Canadians.  We are continuing our action to crack down on crime — real crime.

Building on our Tackling Violent Crime Act that was passed before the 2008 election, we have already introduced tough measures this session to deal with crime more effectively.

For instance, we have brought forward a Bill that requires a mandatory jail sentence for criminals convicted of manufacturing drugs, or drug pushers who are caught selling drugs to children or dealing outside of schools.

At the end of March, Minister Nicholson introduced legislation to restrict “credit for time served”, which limits the amount of credit that courts may grant to convicted criminals for the time they served in custody prior to their sentencing.

Our Government believes murderers must serve serious time for the serious crime. This is why we introduced a new bill that will keep murderers off our streets.  This new law would make parole impossible for at least 25 years for criminals serving a life sentence for first degree murder; and criminals who commit first- or second-degree murder would no longer be able to apply for early parole.

The safety and security of Canadians is one of the Conservative Government’s most serious responsibilities. As such, this Government is continuing to move forward on its crime agenda. Canadians want action on crime now and that is what we intend to deliver.

To summarize the legislative success in this past session, our Government successfully passed 20 pieces of legislation.  Thanks to Conservative leadership Canada now has stronger environmental protections; new free trade agreements with our partners in Europe and South America; and more control over our Arctic sovereignty.

Summary of Session

I was part of the extensive pre-budget consultations over the months of December and January. Minister Flaherty and I met with Canadians across the country from every walk of life.

Then, as indicated in Budget 09, we announced we would review federally regulated private pension plans because this issue is important to many Canadians.  I served as Chair for the pension consultation process and completed the cross country consultation in April after having travelled to eight cities across this great country of ours.

After the completion of the consultations, I was asked by Minister Flaherty to represent him and the Government of Canada at the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development in London in May.  Then after having been back in Canada for a mere 12 hours, I attended and participated in the First Minister’s Finance Meeting with Minister Flaherty in Quebec with all Provincial Finance Ministers attending.

I then attended, for the second time, the Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development Forum (OECD) held in Paris at the end of June. 
Events this Summer


Even though Parliament is now in recess for the summer, I still have quite a busy schedule ahead of me.  At the beginning of July, I have Canada Day events to attend across the riding, then it is off to Stampede to support my many constituents that participate, work at, and attend the Greatest Outdoor Show on Earth!

I will also have the privilege of attending the World Angus Forum in Spruce Meadows, and on July 18th, I will be participating in the Bragg Creek Days Parade.   Then it’s off to participate in many other parades and events taking place throughout my beautiful riding of Macleod.

Conclusion

Despite the challenges we’re facing in our economy – and the business people, entrepreneurs and workers who fuel it – Canada is still among the strongest countries in the world and will remain so with the help of our Economic Action Plan, and the continued strong efforts of the individual Canadians that this government relies on to work hard, remain focused, and be innovative.

We created a website www.actionplan.gc.ca that explains how our Plan benefits individuals, businesses, and communities.  What’s more, that website is also part of our Conservative Government’s effort to show transparency and accountability with respect to our Plan - by allowing Canadians to track investments we’ve made. If you would like to be more informed about the Progress of our Economic Action Plan, I strongly encourage you to visit this site.  

If you have any events or special days that you would like me to know about, please do not hesitate to contact my office and I will do my best to attend.

Have a happy, fun filled and above all, safe summer! 

I look forward to seeing you soon!

Ted Menzies, MP
Macleod