If you are to give in to the tax cut pressure, you are setting the stage for big spending cuts later, or else the government will fall into deficit, quite likely. As the Conservative election platform indicates, we should expect $22.5 billion in spending cuts over the next five years in order to pay for Harper's election promises. If government spending is cut on this scale, we will not be able to do the things that actually would help competitiveness--making investments in infrastructure, post-secondary education, safeguarding the health care system, and so forth.
The alternative federal budget that my organization puts out sets forth the priorities we would like the government to follow. You can access this online, if you would like to see our more detailed plans. But the bottom line here is that, at minimum, you must resist the pressure to cut taxes further. If you give in to the tax cut lobby, it is game over for any constructive policy response to competitiveness.
Thank you.