To the Editor:
While Stephen Harper revs up his election themes about fear, insecurity and lower expectations, Justin Trudeau’s core message is about economic growth, fairness and better opportunities. The contrast is powerful -- in Mr. Trudeau’s favour.
Mr. Harper is saying that Canadians need to settle for mediocrity. He’s been in office for more than nine years now. Nearly six years have passed since the end of the 2008 recession. And most people are still struggling.
On Mr. Harper’s watch, annual economic growth has averaged just 1.7 per cent, the worst record of any Prime Minister in 80 years. Job creation is anemic. Job quality is declining. Middle-class earnings are flat, and for every dollar of disposable income, the average household is carrying $1.64 in debt.
Three-quarters of those working in the private sector don’t have a company pension. Of those within 10-years of retirement, the vast majority have savings of less than $100,000. The average 35-year old today is able to save only about half of what their parents did.
A majority of parents are worried about affording post-secondary education for their kids, whether that’s at university, college, technical school or apprenticeships. Many also have significant family care expenses, either for young children, elderly relatives, or both.
In 40 per cent of “empty-nester” households, their adult children have moved back home (or never left) because they haven’t been able to make a go of it on their own. The Bank of Canada says more than 200,000 young Canadians are jobless or under-employed.
According to the Conference Board, a majority of Canadians believe the younger generation today will not be able to do as well as their parents. The expectation of progress -- of upward mobility -- from one generation to the next cannot be taken for granted anymore.
So for most Canadians, much of the past decade has been disappointing. And the same is true of Mr. Harper’s reaction. He denies the realities confronting the middle-class and all those working so hard just to get there. He shirks federal responsibilities in such serious fields as health care, pensions, services to veterans and public safety. And he contrives special tax breaks skewed for the wealthy.
That’s just not good enough. Canada needs a plan to drive greater growth and fairness.
That means investments in better access to higher learning, science and innovation, effective trade and marketing, the smartest possible intersection between energy development and the environment, and truly transformative public infrastructure.
Who says so? The G-20, the International Monetary Fund, the Bank of Canada, the Parliamentary Budget Officer, the Premiers, Municipalities, every major think-tank from the C.D. Howe Institute to the Canada-West Foundation, the Chamber of Commerce, the Council of Chief Executives, the Canadian Labour Congress ... the list goes on.
They all identify investments in public infrastructure as crucial. With interest rates so low, former Bank of Canada Governor David Dodge says this is an historic opportunity to convert that unique cost advantage into long-term capital assets -- stimulating good jobs today and laying the foundation for a better economy tomorrow.
Statistics Canada says whenever investments in public infrastructure go up, so does Canadian productivity. Even the federal Department of Finance has identified building essential infrastructure as the single most cost-effective way to drive jobs and growth.
And for fairness, a good start would be dropping Mr. Harper’s ill-conceived Income Splitting scheme that will provide its biggest $2000/year tax break to those earning $233,000.
Only 14 per cent of Canadian households can ever qualify for Mr. Harper’s scheme. But Income Splitting will cost all other taxpayers more than $12-billion over this government’s planning cycle.
As the late Jim Flaherty said, it is far too expensive and grossly unfair. And it does nothing for greater growth.
Ralph Goodale
Member of Parliament for Wascana
