Alternative provincial budget released
Posted Mar 25, 2013 01:28:40 PM.
This article is more than 5 years old.
An alternative budget has been released for the provincial government.
Created by the Canadian Centre for Policy Alternatives, it states balancing the budget isn’t the be-all-end-all. The CCPA believes for the economy to improve, the government needs to pull their focus away from balancing a budget and re-invest in income assistance.
James Sawler is a professor of economics at Mount Saint Vincent University, he says we need to focus on our poverty and housing deficits.
“If we’re balancing the budget at the expense of these kind of investments, then we’re really just hurting our long-run economic and social opportunities.”
Other highlights in the think-tank’s alternative budget include investing in rural development, renewable energy, and making the temporary tax bracket for those earning more than $150,000 permanent.
Director Christine Saulnier says their budget offers the government a different perspective.
“So that when we look at the kind of decisions we’re making as a province around resources, we have to ask where the biggest bang for our buck is, but also what is the right thing to do.”
CCPA has presented their suggested budget to Finance Minister Maureen MacDonald during a series of public consultations. In the past, Saulnier says the province has looked into their suggestions and principles have been implemented.
The government has said it will table a balanced budget when it delivers it next Thursday, April 4th.
