April 2012
The Deficit for 2011-12 will be Lower than Forecast in Budget 2012
The February 2012 Fiscal Monitor reports a surplus of $1.6 billion for February 2012, compared to a deficit of $0.6 billion in February 2011.
Read MoreBUDGET 2012: THE NUMBERS JUST DON'T ADD UP
This paper looks at the economic and fiscal projections presented in Budget 2012. Based on our assessment of the proposed expenditure “savings”, we believe that the Government will not balance the budget in 2015-16, and may have difficulty in achieving a balanced budget by 2016-17. The fiscal impact of some the expenditure savings are overstated and unless programs and services are cut, it will not be able to achieve the targeted savings through “efficiency” measures.
Economic Assumptions
Read MoreA BUDGET WITHOUT TRANSPARENCY, ACCOUNTABILITY AND CREDIBILITY
We had hoped that Budget 2012, the first for a Conservative majority, would provide a bold policy agenda that would confront the longer-run economic and social challenges facing Canada: the consequences of an ageing population; declining employment prospects; growing income inequalities; inadequate savings and investment; poor productivity; and, growing provincial economic and income disparities. We had hoped that Budget 2012 would be the beginning of a more transparent, accountable, and inclusive budget process.
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