I'm going to begin in French.
Good morning and welcome to the Northwest Territories.
Alternatives North is a coalition of churches, anti-poverty, labour, environmental, and women's groups, small businesses, and individual members.
In our submission, we have provided a historical context of the causes of the economic crisis. I would like to raise a few points. We have indicated that financial policies have a major impact on working families. The number of families living under the poverty line grew five times faster in the 1990s than the family population itself. Most income growth went to the top 20%.
In the Northwest Territories, we have noted growing inequality and poverty. I would like point out a fact to support this point. From 2006 to 2007, 4% of households in the Northwest Territories had an income of less than $10,000, and 19% had an income of less than $30,000. These households are most often located in small communities, that are mostly aboriginal, and the cost of living is very high. The Far North is also suffering from a shortage of affordable housing, as well as early childhood and educational centres. It has been noted that aboriginal populations have not prospered as much as the rest of the Canadian population.
We have established the following guiding principles: reducing social inequality must be one of the main goals of our efforts; public investments and wage increases will be crucial. These were significant factors that helped people overcome the Great Depression. Today we continue to believe that they are essential.
Alternatives North has three recommendations on stimulus measures. The first is to restore a more progressive tax system so we can decrease present inequality and fund spending on much-needed programs. A progressive tax system would remove tax obligations from those below the poverty line; tax unearned income at the same rate as earned income; return corporate tax rates to pre-1980 levels; and use tax incentives to foster conversion to renewable energy technology sources.
Our second recommendation is to focus our infrastructure spending on public projects aimed at energy conservation, conversion to green energy sources, and affordable housing stock. I'd like to point out that these types of projects could be done throughout the north, including in small, more remote communities.
Our third point is to address social infrastructure deficits, with an initial focus on the direct public creation of more child education and care spaces, and move toward a nationally funded early childhood care education program that provides quality care and is accessible and affordable. This would be an excellent job creation approach and would remove barriers to employment for many families.
You asked what changes should be made to federal stimulus measures. We say you should stop focusing on cutting tax for the rich. Tax cuts for the rich largely end up in savings, paying down debt, and buying imports. To quote Benjamin Tal, who is a senior economist with CIBC world markets, “infrastructure spending is a much more effective tool than tax cuts” in terms of economic stimulus.
The second point is that you need to remove the requirement for the matching of funds. We believe that many jurisdictions will not be able to raise those funds, so much of the promised federal money will go unused.
You need to stop asking for wage concessions for private enterprises receiving government assistance. I note the example of the auto workers.
You need to focus on public projects and not public-private partnerships that really hide the debt of government. There are additional costs because the private enterprise is looking for profit.
Finally, economic recessions come and go, but the ecological crisis we are facing will not. We have to combine our efforts to address both of these causes at the same time.
Thank you for your attention.