Thank you, Chair. Thank you to our Parliamentary Budget Officer for being here with your colleagues.
Since coming to office, our Conservative government has been implementing its low-tax plan. In fact, since 2006 our government has lowered over 180 different taxes leaving about $30 billion in the pockets of Canadians. I think you confirmed that in your previous report.
The average Canadian family now will have an extra $4,500 in their pockets at the end of next year. In addition to that, corporate taxes are also now reported to be about 46% lower than those in the United States. As a result we're seeing companies like Tim Hortons moving their corporate head offices back to Canada in order to take advantage of our lower tax policies. This of course in turn creates jobs and grows the economy.
At the same time as reducing taxes we're also on track to balance the budget a year ahead of schedule. This is unusual because many countries in fact have to raise taxes in order to balance their budgets. We've been able to do the opposite. We've been able to keep taxes low and balance our budgets at the same time. Given this, would you say that the Conservative government's plan to stay the course by keeping taxes low and balancing the budget is working?