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Thursday, March 24, 2016

Investing in Canadians

"There are, however, credible numbers in the budget that demonstrate how its significant stimulative spending initiatives should result in increases to the gross domestic product (GDP). If the GDP does indeed grow as forecast, we will see no significant increase in the key debt-to-GDP ratio, even if we run modest annual deficits for a while.
That ratio is a more important measure of a country's fiscal health than the simple deficit figure."


Trudeau's first budget is about direct investments not tax gimmicks


The Trudeau government has tabled its first budget and it is radically different from what we got from the Harper government for nearly a decade.
The Trudeau government obviously believes that if a government wants to achieve an important goal it should invest -- not, as Harper did, create a complex series of boutique tax measures.
There are no new boutique tax credits for individuals in this budget, and no special tax measures for businesses.

The budget announces a number of major spending measures: for First Nations education and infrastructure, for green energy projects, for public transit, for poor and single seniors.

But when it comes to tax credits, it not only does not create any new ones, it cancels the Conservatives' credit for kids' sports and arts activities.

Instead of what it calls the Harper government's complicated child benefit system, this budget creates the promised Child Tax Benefit, which is largely tax-free and targeted to lower income families.
More money for families; no universal child care (yet)
In his budget speech, Finance Minister Bill Morneau touts this new initiative as a major breakthrough, on par with such landmark programs as universal health care and the Canada Pension Plan.

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