Mr. Speaker, Canadians were looking for some kind of hope in yesterday's budget but the only thing they got was illusion. There was the illusion of job creation, an end to the cuts, an illusion to preserving social programs and the illusion of no new taxes, which looks so grand.
The reality is that the budget does nothing to create long term jobs. It only puts off cuts until after the next election. It ends the sanctimonious promise of universality for social programs. Also, by failing to deal decisively with the debt and deficit, the budget takes more money from taxpayers' pockets.
Did the finance minister really think Canadians would be fooled by a time release budget that delays tax increases and program cuts until after the next election?