January 2015
CANADIANS DESERVE A “REAL BUDGET"
Budgets are becoming less and less important as policy documents but does anyone really care or does it really matter: certainly not for the Harper government?
Finance Minister Joe Oliver did a 180-degree flip on January 16th. After much confusion about the impact of the dramatic fall in oil prices, Mr. Oliver announced that the budget would be delayed until after March 31, perhaps to April or even May or maybe even until after the election. There is no legal or constitutional requirement to table a budget.
Read MoreDISAPPEARING CREDIBIL.ITY
In last year’s budget, the price of oil was $110 a barrel. In June, the price of a barrel of oil began to fall and by October it was down to close to $80. The government was not at all concerned by this decline or to emerging risks in the global oil market.
Indeed the government was so confident that the risks were minimal that in the same month Prime Minister Harper, with great fanfare, announced major tax cuts, including income splitting.
Read MoreJOE OLIVEWR HAS A PROBLEM
In last year’s budget, the price of oil was $110 a barrel. In June, the price of a barrel of oil began to fall and by October it was down to close to $80. The government was not at all concerned by this decline or to emerging risks in the global oil market.
Indeed the government was so confident that the risks were minimal that in the same month Prime Minister Harper, with great fanfare, announced major tax cuts, including income splitting.
Read More