I have returned to Ottawa as the House sits again on March 3rd. First there will be the Speech from the Throne and then our 2010-2011 Budget on March 4th. We are committed to staying on track with our stimulus spending through the next year but there will be no new spending as we work toward reducing our deficit spending and getting back to balanced budgets. Canadian’s number one priority is jobs and our Economic Action Plan has helped address this need. Canadian’s second priority is to eliminate the deficit spending by their government and this will be reflected in the ensuing budgets.

I was in Washington D.C. a couple of weeks ago and the newspaper USA Today had an article on the 1.37 trillion dollars of new spending by the US Government. This increased spending is already on top of the deficit they have already implemented. The article informed readers of the per capita federal debt in the USA, which is a little over $40,000 per capita. A family of five would be responsible for $200,000 of that debt.

Our Federal debt was paid down during our first three years as government by $40 billion dollars. Because of the economic downturn our government has increased this debt and will do so for the next 4 years in an effort to stabilize our economy. Our total federal debt load will be about $550 billion which is about $17,000 per capita or $85,000 for a family of five. Even though this is mind-boggling, the fact is we have the least debt per GDP in the G20.  Your government is committed to trying to keep tax rates down and address the cost of government through careful analysis and to review and cut programs or spending that are not producing results for Canadians. We will get back to debt reduction ASAP. 

Remember that most of this federal debt is asset based, meaning the money was borrowed to build a bridge or highway, water or sewer infrastructure. I believe taxpayers don’t mind this type of debt.  However, the debts incurred operating government and programs which causes government to spend more than they take in just to operate year to year are what taxpayers are uncomfortable with.  Our government is committed to balancing our operational budget.

The Minister of Finance has recently announced new provisions to mortgage terms which include minimum down payments on real estate purchases and limits to minimum short term mortgages.  These measures were taken in order to prevent the type of melt down we have witnessed in the US Mortgage industry. Just as your government needs to manage your money more frugally, all Canadians must look at their personal budgets and debt loads and make certain they are realistic and responsible.