Mr. Speaker, I am very happy to speak on the budget today. It is an excellent budget. There are a couple of very important ingredients in the budget. Generally it is a balanced budget, it is a responsible budget and it is a compassionate budget. Let me state why those three things are very important for us on the government side.
The budget had to be balanced because we want to ensure that the actions we have taken on the deficit do not take away from the future. I know some people have said that they want to get rid of the deficit in three years but we have said right from the beginning that
our approach in dealing with the deficit would be balanced and reasonable and that we would deal with it in a compassionate and responsible way.
When we became the government there was a $42 billion deficit, a problem which many said was very difficult to deal with. During the first radio show I did after the election Bill Good asked me if my government was really going to deal with the deficit. I said that absolutely, we were going to deal with it because it was important for the future of the country, but that we were going to do it in a responsible way.
In the last election campaign we set specific targets and said that we were going to meet those targets. In the last four budgets we have met all the targets; in fact, we have done better than meeting the targets. It was very important to meet every one of our targets because it sent the very strong message to the international financial community that we were serious about dealing with the deficit.
Some of the Reform members are trying to take credit for our actions on the deficit but during election time we set specific targets, not because of the Reform Party but because we felt it was important to deal with it. Those targets have been met and as the minister stated in the last budget, we will be at least $5 billion below our target of $24 billion.
It was very important to meet our targets for a number of reasons. Because of the confidence we have established in the international community, our dollar has stabilized. Interest rates are unprecedented; I cannot remember the last time Canadian interest rates were below American interest rates. Our interest rates are presently more than two and a half per cent below the American interest rates. In the past it has always been the reverse, where the American interest rates were two to two and a half per cent below the Canadian interest rates.
This is what will create jobs. Opposition members have asked, what about jobs? Low interest rates create jobs, investment and confidence. Interest rates play a major role in the investment decisions of small and medium size businesses. If someone wants to construct a new building, for example, a new hotel or a new factory, interest rates will play a very important role in determining if that investment will go ahead. Canadians buying homes have to look at what the interest rates are. Interest rates can affect their choice of a home because of their influence on monthly mortgage payments. When Canadians buy cars, the interest rate is an important factor which determines whether or not they can afford to buy a car.
We have one of the lowest inflation rates of the G-7 countries. This will ensure the maintenance of our low interest rates.
All these things, dealing with the deficit, meeting our targets, having credibility in the financial markets, have led to lower interest rates, lower inflation rates and a greater confidence in the economy. It is so much so that economists are predicting Canada will have the best growth figures in the next medium term compared to other G-7 countries. It was not any easy task and all Canadians know that. It was a difficult task to achieve what we have today.
The attitude of this government and the finance minister was to look at government from the bottom up. We did not just say that to deal with the deficit we were going to cut everybody by a certain percentage. As a government we said that we wanted to review all programs starting from the bottom up. We said that we wanted to get rid of those programs that were no longer relevant to Canadians. We said that we wanted to get rid of those crown corporations that were no longer relevant to Canadians. We looked at how we could turn those services that could be provided more efficiently and effectively by private industry, municipal governments and provincial governments over to them.
Canadians have said to us that they want a government that is efficient, that they want less duplication and less waste. That is another area we looked at in terms of saving money and dealing with the deficit. We asked: Where is there waste in government? Where are there inefficiencies? How can we do it better? This was the basic view we took in trying to deal with the deficit and in trying to re-engineer government to meet the 21st century, to move forward into the next century where we could have a government structure that could be with us for a long time. It was not an easy task. It was a difficult task, but that is what we have done.
We also understood that there are investments to be made in this country so that we could be competitive in the rest of the world, that Canadian products could be sold. The reality is there is globalization. We have to compete on the international market. Canada is a trading nation.
We understood, for example, that infrastructure is very important to be competitive around the world. If we have road systems, ports, airports that are efficient we will be more competitive. If we have a communications system that is efficient and responsive we will be able to be more competitive in the rest of the world. If we have ports that can ship products very efficiently it helps the business community because it is more efficient and much more cost effective. We understood that. That is why we had an infrastructure program to ensure that we maintain the infrastructure and improve it for the coming century.
We also recognized that research and development is very important. Any country that does not do research and development falls behind. So in this budget we have said that there will be $800 million in the Canada Foundation for Innovation, $800 million
toward research and development which, by the way, will be administered by the private sector. It will determine where it is most advantageous for Canadians to spend that money.
We also understand how important trade is for Canada. That is why we have the Prime Minister's Team Canada missions where he has travelled to the Asia-Pacific, to South America and other regions to tell other countries that Canada is ready for business. Canada has the expertise. It has the skills. It has the products to deliver to people around the world.
I can say having the opportunity to travel and meet many leaders around the world that other countries want to do business with Canada. They know the type of products that we can provide. They know the skills, the efficiencies and the quality of the products which Canada provides in goods and services. They have all said "We want to see Canada at the table. We want them to be there because we are confident in the services and products they provide".
We understand how education is so very important for Canadians. That is why we have made it easier for students to pay back their loans, to give them more time and not to have to pay back their loans in the first six months but over 30 months to give students that leeway.
As well, we have said we want to encourage people to invest in education. That is why the registered education savings plan has been doubled from $2,000 a year to $4,000 a year to encourage Canadians to invest in education and invest in their children.
We recognize that truly children are our future. I am proud of this government's work on child poverty where we have invested in children. We are making sure that we help those children of the working poor. That is the recognition of a country with true compassion that cares for those people who are less fortunate.