Mr. Speaker, I am pleased to speak today on the 1996 budget which was tabled in Parliament March 6.
It reflects the priorities of the government. It ensures that the need to be more frugal will never come before the need to be more compassionate and fair. It strikes a delicate balance between fiscal reality and social responsibility.
The government has met its deficit reduction targets and is on its way to surpassing them without raising taxes. At the same time, it is protecting and preserving our valued social programs like medicare and pension programs for seniors.
These twin goals have been achieved through good governance. The response from the Canadian public has been positive. The day after the budget was delivered last month, newspapers across the country carried headlines expressing optimism and support.
In my home town, the Winnipeg Free Press gave the finance minister high marks for meeting his deficit projections. ``Too many finance ministers before him have promised honey and delivered vinegar''.
This achievement in fiscal responsibility and stability has contributed to Canada's strong economic performance and therefore job creation. Since 1993, when the Liberals took office, nearly 600,000 jobs have been created nationwide.
In addition, the merchandise trade surplus has increased and short term interest rates have decreased, decreasing the amount of mortgage payments which citizens have to pay. Inflation has fallen sharply. All of these have boosted investor confidence in Canada.
The deficit targets of 3 per cent of GDP for 1996-97 and 2 per cent for 1997-98 will be achieved. In 1997-98 the financial requirements of government will fall to $6 billion or about 0.7 per cent of GDP, making it the lowest since 1969 and the lowest of any central government in the G-7 countries.
All of these achievements will translate into job creation, which remains the number one priority of the government. I am pleased that we have created over half a million jobs since 1993. However, we know this is not enough and that is why our efforts of job creation remain our overwhelming commitment.
Budgeting is more than putting our fiscal house in order and more than deficit reduction. It is more than balancing our revenues and expenditures. Financial stewardship is only a tool to the primary purpose of government which is to serve citizens.
Canadians value our nation's social programs. We worry when we hear of hospital closures, cuts to education funding and reductions to social assistance for the less fortunate in society. Canadians wonder how universal medicare, access to post-secondary education and social assistance can be sustained given all the pressures on our system.
Therefore in order to ease the mind of citizens and to reaffirm the government's commitment to health, education and social assistance, the 1996 budget provides the stability and subsequent growth to its transfers to the provinces by legislating a new
five-year funding arrangement for the Canada health and social transfer program beginning in 1998-99.
Entitlements over this period will grow from $25.1 billion to approximately $27.4 billion. More important, there will be a new cash floor for transfers of at least $11.1 billion in all years thereafter. This will give the federal government the leverage to maintain our valued social programs.
For the province of Manitoba, where I come from, the major transfers in terms of the Canada health and social transfer and the equalization payments which later on will replace the established programs financing will exceed $2 billion in 1996-97 and are expected to total roughly $1,875 per person in 1995-96, about 48 per cent of the national average. We see there is a significant transfer of money from the federal government to the province of Manitoba.
Just for comparison, per capita Manitoba will be getting less than Newfoundland, P.E.I., Nova Scotia and New Brunswick but it will be getting more than Quebec, Ontario, Saskatchewan, Alberta and B.C.
That defines for us the character of our nation: those who have more share with those who have less. It also defines our Canadian identity.
Secure and growing funding for our transfer program will ensure the federal government's capacity to uphold the five principles of medicare: universality, portability, accessibility, non-private, public administration, and comprehensiveness; as well, the principle that no residency requirement can be imposed on social assistance recipients who move from one province to another.
These measures will enable the government to keep its deficit reduction targets while protecting the future of our social programs. This type of balanced approach tells us how the government is very fiscally realistic and at the same time very socially responsible.
Canada currently spends approximately 10 per cent of GDP on health care. Other nations spend more but do not provide universal access to their citizens. Indeed we are fortunate in Canada. We enjoy universal access. It is one of the most envied health care systems in the world. However, we realize we must do all we can to protect our system. We must ensure that each and every health care dollars is spent wisely.
To this end we would like to know in which new technologies and techniques to invest, which old ones to retain or abandon and how to organize health services to get the maximum benefit from available resources. This is our commitment. Because of this the budget has allocated health services research funds to the tune of $65 million.
As well, the budget has increased assistance to those in need with the new child support taxation measures to benefit our children, the future of our nation. We have not forgotten our seniors. We are committed to introducing a new seniors benefit program that will ensure sustainability by targeting those who need assistance most without affecting the benefits received by current seniors.
The government cannot do it alone. That is why the government has challenged the private sector. We know that a measure of success in any country is when citizens try their own initiatives and at the same time commit and challenge themselves in the service of the country.
Imagine a country that is number one in which to live, according to the United Nations. Imagine a country where interest rates have decreased over 300 bases points since early 1995, a country where deficit targets have consistently decreased from 6 per cent, to 5 per cent, to 3 per cent and to 2 per cent until the budget is balanced. Imagine a country where financial requirements will fall to $6 billion or .7 per cent of the GDP from $30 billion or 4.2 per cent in 1993-94, the lowest since 1969 and the lowest in any central government of the G-7 countries. Imagine when the drop in program spending has been dramatic, from 16.8 per cent to 12 per cent. That country is Canada and budget '96 reflects the soul of this country.