Budget Reaction: A roundup of what NGOs and other groups think of Flaherty's 8th budget

The 2012 federal budget was tabled in the House of Commons on Thursday afternoon. Here’s a roundup of reaction. (and I’ll be updating as I slowly catch up reading through the blizzard of releases that followed Thursday’s budget…

Industry Groups:

  • Canadian Federation of Agriculture: “Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada was one of ten departments to see cuts in the double digits. If these budget measures increase efficiency in program and service delivery to farmers, then we wholeheartedly support them. If the cuts result in hampering the success of farmers’ businesses and rural communities, then this will be an area of concern we will address and will work with the Government to identify solutions. We need to maintain a strong agricultural industry and support our producers to ensure Canada continues to compete successfully within a changing global economy,” commented CFA President Ron Bonnett.
  • Canadian Labour Congress: “The government could have used this budget to help struggling middle class and working Canadians,” CLC President Ken Georgetti says, “but it chose to not to do so.”
  • Canadian Media Guild: “This is a sad day. We don’t yet know exactly what these cuts will mean for CBC/Radio-Canada services and employees,” says Marc-Philippe Laurin, president of the Guild’s CBC branch. “However, this is a major cut that will surely have a devastating impact on CBC services by 2015.”
  • Canadian Media Production Association: “The Government made no secret it planned to trim budgets across all federal departments, agencies, and Crown corporations,” says Norm Bolen, President and CEO, CMPA. “We are obviously concerned that there could be less money to put Canadian programming on screens. However, we also recognize that things could have been much worse.”
  • Canadian Restaurant and Foodservices Association: “To many it may seem easy to just round transactions up or down, but there will be some challenges for the restaurant industry, which handles 18 million transactions a day and many of them in cash,” says Garth Whyte, President and CEO of the CRFA. “There may be short term penny pain for long term gain – we must get the transition right.”
  • Canadian Youth Business Foundation: “CYBF respects the continued commitment of the Government of Canada in making difficult fiscal decisions while continuing to recognize the importance of entrepreneurship to the economic growth of Canada” explains Vivian Prokop, chief executive officer of CYBF, widely considered the go-to organization driving youth entrepreneurship in Canada. “The dedication to build an entrepreneurial culture in this country benefits us in seizing opportunities to place Canada at the forefront of the global entrepreneurial community, while creating jobs for Canadians and strengthening our economy in the long term.”
  • Certified Management Accountants of Canada: “The government should be congratulated for introducing a number of good measures to improve Canadian innovation and focus research and development resources,” said Joy Thomas, MBA, FCMA, C.Dir., President and CEO of CMA Canada. “These are areas CMA Canada stressed in the pre-budget process.”
  • Communication Workers of America: “”We know the government has to trim the deficit, but they don’t need to do it on the backs of seniors and Canadian culture,” said CWA Canada Director Martin O’Hanlon. “It’s hard to understand how the Conservatives can justify delaying pensions for seniors as they pour tens of billions of dollars into questionable fighter jets, a fleet of navy ships, and unnecessary prison expansion.”
  • EthicalOil.org: “The Federal government should be commended for clamping down on the partisan and political activity of special interest groups masquerading as charities. Using taxpayer subsidies to attack Canada’s Ethical Oil is not charity.”-Jamie Ellerton, Executive Director, EthicalOil.org
  • Grain Growers of Canada: “We are glad to see trade remains a high priority for the federal government.  Our Agriculture Minister has been tireless in strengthening trade relationships and opening new markets for Canadian farmers,” says Stephen Vandervalk, President of the Grain Growers of Canada.  “I’ve seen Agriculture Canada’s Market Access people in action and they are doing excellent work that is helping push an aggressive trade policy forward that is beneficial to farmers across Canada.”
  • Investment Industry Association of Canada: “We have not had a strong recovery since the 2008 financial crisis, and only modest growth is expected over the next few years.  However, the budget has addressed the need to encourage sustained private sector growth and job creation in the country, and put health, education and social programs on a sound footing,“ said Ian Russell, IIAC President and CEO.   “In that regard, this budget is different from those of the past.”
  • Merit Canada: “Good economic policy is good construction policy”, said Oakey.  “Any measures which create jobs, deal with impending shortages of skilled tradespeople, and reduce regulatory burden are a positive step for our nation and for the construction industry.”
  • Writers Guild of Canada: WGC Executive Director Maureen Parker says “this budget is more than belt tightening; it is squeezing the life from the public broadcaster. The CBC makes a critical contribution to excellence, employment and economic generation in the Canadian television and digital media industries. It is the main driver of Canadian production. In addition to spin-off economic activity, CBC productions generate thousands of knowledge economy jobs for screenwriters, actors, directors, producers, crew, technical and production services and more. The cuts in this budget will have a devastating effect on the entire production community in Canada, and ultimately on the quality of programming choice for Canadian audiences.”

Energy and Environment Groups

  • Canadian Propane Association [pdf]: “The CPA applauds the Government for acting on the recommendation,” said CPA President & CEO, Jim Facette. “As an important part of the larger energy industry in Canada, the propane industry will also benefit from the reduced administrative and financial hurdles, as well as the increased growth, that ‘one project, one review’ will bring to the energy industry.”
  • Environmental Defence: “The plan to weaken one of Canada’s foremost environmental laws outlined in today’s budget is nothing more than a gift to Big Oil. It’s a cynical attack on one of Canada’s most important environmental protections and it serves the immediate interests of one industry over the interests of all Canadians, who want to trust that their land, air and water are being safeguarded.” – Deputy Campaign Director, Gillian McEachern
  • Greenpeace Canada: “Big oil is the big winner in today’s budget, as the Harper government announced that it will dismantle environmental laws that help protect our forests, air, water and wildlife from uncontrolled industrial activity like tar sands mines and pipelines. Canadians are the big losers, as this budget makes it easier for oil companies to destroy Canada’s natural heritage and reduce the capacity of key ministries to enforce the environmental laws that still exist,” said Greenpeace Canada Climate and Energy Coordinator Keith Stewart.

Health, social policy and other groups

  • Association of Canadian Academic Healthcare Organizations: “Investments in basic research and knowledge creation go hand-in-hand with bringing innovative products and services to the marketplace, one cannot exist without the other”, said Ms. Chris Power, ACAHO Board Chair, and President & CEO of Capital District Health Authority in Halifax.  As much as innovation underpins our standard of living, it also plays a crucial role in “bending the cost curve” and providing Canadians with an uncompromising experience when receiving quality health services.”
  • Association of Universities and Colleges of Canada: “In the face of tough fiscal choices, the government showed leadership by continuing its investments in research, innovation, research infrastructure and university-private sector collaborations,” says Stephen Toope, chair of the Association of Universities and Colleges of Canada’s board of directors and president of the University of British Columbia. “These investments will build a stronger future for our society and economy.”
  • Canadian Association of Graduate Studies: “The Finance Minister has heard our message. He understands the importance of innovation and research to Canada’s long-term prosperity”, says Jay Doering, President of the Canadian Association of Graduate Studies. “Investing in industry internships and reinvesting in the granting institutions will help build a strong Canadian workforce that will drive the economy”.
  • Canadian Centre for Policy Alternatives: “This may be a 2012 budget but it’s got the 1930s written all over it,” says CCPA Senior Economist David Macdonald. “Federal austerity, combined with provincial austerity budgets, will create a fiscal drag on Canada’s economy.  “We are dismantling public programs and peeling back income supports such as Old Age Security without asking profitable corporations and the wealthy among us to do their part. We saw a similar story unfold in the 1930s and it didn’t end well. History is repeating itself.”
  • Canadian Federation of Municipalities: “We welcome today’s $150 million commitment to the new Community Infrastructure Improvement Fund which will again see all orders of government working shoulder-to-shoulder to create jobs and invest in communities in a time of global economic uncertainty.The budget fails to deliver on fixing Canada’s rental housing market. The budget does nothing new to support the affordable, rental housing that communities need to attract new workers and Canadians need as they pay off record-high household debts.”
  • Canadian Healthcare Association: “Budget 2012 addresses a number of important health concerns,” said Pamela C. Fralick, President and CEO, Canadian Healthcare Association. “But, Canada will not have the world class health system it deserves with a piecemeal approach. Federal leadership is a necessary component of comprehensive health system improvement.”
  • Canadian Medical Association: “Cutting back on Old Age Security targets the most vulnerable citizens in our society,” said Dr. John Haggie, CMA president. “It means that many seniors will have to choose between heating, eating and paying for their prescriptions. In that case, they’ll forfeit their drugs.”
  • Canadian Alliance on Mental Illness and Mental Health: “By investing in community supports for people living with mental illness, the Government of Canada is showing that it understands the importance reducing the barriers to mental health services,” says Dr. John Higenbottam, co-chair of the CAMIMH. “It is vitally important that we look to the needs of the community when it comes to mental disorders and health promotion and that we respond to those in ways that are effective.
  • Canadian Taxpayers Federation: ““Spending cuts announced today are a drop in the bucket,” said director Gregory Thomas. “Program spending will rise $3.4 billion in the coming year and $4.1 billion in 2013-14. Somebody should remind Jim Flaherty that Stephen Harper promised to balance the budget by 2014-15, because this budget won’t get the job done.”
  • Council of Canadians: “Budget 2012 continues the Harper government’s full on attack on environmental protection and a sustainable energy future,” says Andrea Harden-Donahue, Energy and Climate Justice Campaigner for the Council of Canadians. “There is no money towards ‘no brainer’ investments like energy efficiency and renewable energy, plenty of money to subsidize the tar sands and a slashing and burning of environmental assessments.”
  • Engineers Without Borders: George Roter, Founder and CEO of Engineers Without Borders Canada: “EWB has always taken the view that how we use foreign aid resources is just as important as the amount of money our country gives. That being said, funding matters. As a result of the government’s decision, Canada plans to spend $800 million less on international development assistance over the next 3 years.  That’s roughly akin to cutting all of what we now spend to support Tanzania, Ghana, and Mozambique.”
  • Inuit Taparit Kanatami: “We know that, at a time of cutbacks, new moneys are hard to find,” said Mary Simon, President of ITK. “But the severity of the social and economic challenges by our communities and families does not allow us to think that continuing the status quo will deliver real progress.”
  • National Association of Career Colleges: “With this Budget, the Conservative government has announced that it will continue to support Canadians while still supporting people who need help.  It gives the right tools to people wanting to retrain,” said NACC Chief Executive Officer Serge Buy after reviewing the budget.
  • Oxfam Canada: Oxfam policy coordinator Mark Fried said: “On the generosity index, this budget moves Canada closer to the bottom of the world’s 22 donor countries. Why is the government saving money on the backs of the world’s most vulnerable people?”
  • Royal Canadian Legion: “The federal budget contains cuts to Veterans Affairs Canada that will impact the provision of services and programs to veterans and their families,” says Patricia (Pat) Varga, Dominion President of The Royal Canadian Legion commenting on the federal budget. “These moves are unacceptable to The Royal Canadian Legion membership and we believe to most Canadians.”
  • World Vision Canada: “Sadly today’s budget jeopardizes Canada’s good reputation by disproportionately cutting aid to people living in poverty around the world. In recent years Canada has proudly lead the global community through our commitment to fund maternal and child health and food security, however today’s cuts seriously undermine this work. Cutbacks simply cannot come at the expense of the lives of children and families living in poverty.”

One thought on “Budget Reaction: A roundup of what NGOs and other groups think of Flaherty's 8th budget”

  1. Harper budget eliminates national ecoENERGY Retrofit (devastates energy savings industry)

    In Budget 2012, Prime Minister Stephen Harper failed to renew the federal ecoENERGY Retrofit – Homes program. This will result in reduced levels of energy conservation, and immediate job losses in every Canadian community.

    Just because Canada is blessed with energy, doesn’t mean we should waste it.

    Homeowners in provinces that still have some form of provincial home energy retrofit incentive program will no longer have the support of the federal government’s ecoENERGY Retrofit – Homes program. In Ontario, homeowners get nothing – they no longer have access to either a federal or provincial home retrofit incentive program.

    With Canada poised to invest billions in new energy projects like oil sands, nuclear and wind farms, Harper’s actions are devastating. Hundreds of energy savings companies will be forced to downsize, lay off staff, or shut down altogether.

    Energy efficiency should be at the top of Canada’s energy and jobs agenda, not the bottom.

    http://www.SaveEnergyFirst.ca

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