Debates of May 9th, 2006

[Diane Ablonczy, Conservative, Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister of Finance]

Mr. Speaker, I thank the House for the opportunity to speak on this issue. My colleague opposite seems to think that his next career will be writing scary children's stories. His fiction is quite a bit different from the facts.

The truth is that this government is committed to fiscal restraint. No longer will government spending grow wildly out of control as it did under the Liberals. Their spending grew in 2004-05 by almost 15%. How many Canadians had an increase in their income of 15%? When the Liberals were in government, they thought that taxpayers of this country did not deserve to have a break from that kind of wild uncontrolled spending. Under this government, things will be under control. We will be prudent. We will be reasonable in the spending that we undertake.

Under our plan, government spending will decline next year by about just over 5%. That is a fairly healthy increase in itself, but quite a bit more reasonable than 15% under the Liberals.

We want to ensure that government programs are effective and efficient. The member mentioned the EnerGuide program. The analysis showed that 50¢ of every dollar of this program did not end up in the hands of Canadians trying to improve the energy efficiency of their home at all. It ended up in administrative costs. What kind of program is that when half of the spending on a program ends up in administrative costs and only half goes into the pockets of the people who are supposed to benefit? Shame on the Liberals for trying to defend a program like that.

There will be of course a proper transition of this program. Canadians who have already made applications under this program or signed contracts will continue to get the benefits. We will replace this program from here on in with a program that actually works, a concept the Liberals over there do not seem to understand.

We are launching a review of expenditure management and this is being led by the President of the Treasury Board. By the fall the President of the Treasury Board will come to the House with his expenditure review. It will be based on the following principles: first, that government programs should focus on results and value for money. That is what ordinary Canadians base their spending on.

The second principle is that government programs should be consistent with federal responsibilities instead of spending in every area of jurisdiction and mixing things up. The third principle is that programs that no longer serve the purpose for which they were created should be eliminated. By applying these principles we will ensure that growth in program spending is sustainable and that the federation works better for all Canadians.

The President of the Treasury Board has been asked to identify savings of $1 billion in 2006-07 and a further $1 billion in 2007-08. This is one-half of 1% of spending per year, hardly any kind of big number. In fact, it is an extremely modest number. I would think that any CEO worth his salt could find that kind of saving except perhaps the CEOs that Canada suffered under for several years under the Liberals.

I would like to add that our budget delivers more tax relief for Canadians than in the last four Liberal budgets combined.

[John McCallum, Liberal, Markham—Unionville, ON]

Mr. Speaker, that last comment is totally misleading because she is ignoring the biggest tax cut in Canadian history in 2000 which took five years to work its way through the system.

I have nothing to apologize for in terms of government efficiency. As chair of expenditure review, we found $11 billion in savings. There are two differences that the parliament secretary has been ignoring. First, we announced those measures on budget day. We were responsible. We let Canadians know who the victims would be and where the cuts were to be made. They have some vague commitment to the future. Why not be responsible as we were and let people know on budget day?

Second, our government did not remove the cushion against a return to deficit. That government, like Conservative governments in general, is skating much closer to the edge in terms of returning to deficit finance and undoing the work of 13 years of Liberal government to clean up their $42 billion mess, which we did. That government is getting closer to returning to that mess.

Finally, on the question of EnerGuide, is she saying that those people who lost their money will have their money returned to them? I hope that is the case. It was not clear from--

[The Acting Speaker, Conservative, Andrew Scheer]

The hon. Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister of Finance.

[Diane Ablonczy, Conservative, Calgary Nose Hill, AB]

Mr. Speaker, if the member is not clear on the concept, then why is he trying to scare Canadians without knowing the facts? I suggest he might want to get those facts.

The hon. member says that the victims should know who they are. The victims did know who they were under the Liberals. They were all Canadians having their money squandered and wasted under corrupt schemes by the Liberals. All Canadians were the victims, but they put in a clean, new government that would have reasonable and transparent spending that could be sustained, instead of running up fat deficits and money bags in the treasury while Canadians went without any kind of tax relief.

This government is going to have a proper balance on federal spending without huge surpluses at the expense of Canadians. We are going to make sure that programs are effective and efficient. We are going to make sure that savings continue to be identified by a proper study that will be tabled in the fall. Our budget leaves more money in the hands of Canadians.

[Mauril Bélanger, Liberal, Ottawa—Vanier, ON]

Mr. Speaker, I have to comment on the last statement about the previous Liberal government running up deficits. Au contraire, when the Liberals formed the government they inherited a $42 billion deficit and it was only after three years that we managed to eliminate it. Ever since then we had surplus budgets. We actually paid off $60 billion of debt. For the member opposite to say what she did is not just slightly inaccurate, but is totally inaccurate.

I wanted to come back to the matter of the Canada Council for the Arts. To set the stage so people will know what is at stake, on November 23 the Liberal government announced that it would invest in the next three years, until 2008, an additional $342 million. The bulk of it was basically a doubling of the budget of the Canada Council for the Arts from $150 million a year to $300 million a year, which would have meant a $50 million increase in this current fiscal year, another $100 million the following fiscal year and finally, $150 million and then keeping it at that level with an ongoing $300 million a year.

Essentially, the government was responding to the demand that we go from $5 per capita, and looking at 30 million inhabitants at $5 that would be $150 million, and doubling that to $10 per Canadian citizen over the course of three years to $300 million a year as an annual budget for the Canada Council for the Arts. This was essentially supported by all of the artistic and cultural communities in Canada.

On January 12, 2006 the Minister of Canadian Heritage, who was then the Canadian heritage critic for her party, said on CBC Radio, “We will respect the promise of $300 million for the Canada Council, which will double the budget of the organization because we believe in the importance of the council for the Canadian arts community”. Hallelujah. Of course, the last time I spoke we had just been thrown another comment by the minister who had said that the government was not going to honour any Liberal commitment, which created a lot of uncertainty. When I had a chance to speak on this in an adjournment debate it was before the budget and we did not know. Now we know it is $50 million.

Yesterday the minister thought she would quote the chair of the Canada Council in defence of the $50 million over two years. In effect, all it does is take it from $5 per capita to $6 per capita, a far cry from double the amount. I thought it would be important and essential actually that the comments she made be rebuffed by others who have also commented on the announcement by the government in the budget. Allow me to quote a few.

Christian Bédard, director of Regroupement des artistes en arts visuels du Québec, said:

Unfortunately, with this meagre increase, the cultural sector, and first of all the artists, will continue to get by as in the past, attempting to survive day by day, and keeping Canadian and Quebec artistic creation at arm's length...Cultural enterprises, the creative artists and all those working in related areas are part of an industrial sector with economic benefits that are too important to be neglected in this way.

Brian Brett, chair of the Writers’ Union, said:

The government should ... learn economics 101... Funding to the arts is returned more than 8-fold to Canada’s economy and to its tax revenue.

The Alliance of Canadian Cinema, Television and Radio Artists is concerned about the absence of increased funding for RSC, Telefilm Canada, and the Canadian Television Fund.

I will speak again after the minister's parliamentary secretary speaks.

[Jim Abbott, Conservative, Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister of Canadian Heritage]

Mr. Speaker, the Government of Canada does recognize the important contribution made by the arts and culture to Canadians, their communities and to Canadian society as a whole. It also appreciates the role played by the Canada Council for the Arts in supporting professional artists and non-profit arts organizations in the country, which is why the government was proud to include in the recent budget a total of $50 million of additional support over the next two years for the Canada Council.

As we all know, the budget focused on five key priorities of the government. The announcement of additional investment in the arts reinforces the government's view that culture is key to building the economic and social health of our communities. But there is more.

The budget also announced exemption from capital gains of charitable donations of publicly listed securities to public charities. This is good news for any arts organization involved in securing support from private donors. In fact, this tax break should lead to a new donation total of roughly $300 million annually, and we expect that arts and culture will benefit significantly from this support. This measure is effective immediately. With this announcement, Canada now provides more tax assistance than the United States for both cash donations and donations of listed securities to registered charities.

These two complementary measures were announced by the government because we believe in the contribution that artists make to our country and because we believe that adequate support for the arts and artists should also be the result of a strategic collaboration between government funding and private sector support.

The arts and culture play an essential role in stimulating our social and economic development. Cultural activity contributed more than $39 billion to Canada's GDP in 2002. Support for artists and the arts has led to the development of outstanding Canadian talent in the literary, visual media and performing arts, thereby enriching the lives of Canadians and laying the foundation for our cultural industries to thrive.

Many studies point to the fact that the arts help to build internationally competitive communities that are attractive to knowledge workers and investors. Our artists also serve as influential ambassadors abroad, projecting the image of a modern and cosmopolitan country. They affirm Canadian identity, critical in an increasingly integrated North American and global environment. We are proud of their achievements in Canada as well as in other countries around the world.

Canadian arts institutions perform at a level that is internationally competitive. Not only are they on stages upon which our most talented artists can perform, they are symbols of Canada's maturity and capacity for excellence. They have improved the quality of life in Canadian communities, providing them with a shared appreciation of the power of the arts and the diverse tapestry of perspectives that make up Canada.

Investing in the arts means investing in our cultural industries and economy. Communities across Canada, from the largest to the smallest, are investing in the arts and culture as an economic lever, as a means to attract investment and as a way to improve Canadians quality of life. They recognize the power of the arts and culture in creating a sense of place and in enriching the lives of their citizens. They are taking advantage of the tremendous creativity and cultural vibrancy that exists within their communities and are building strong partnerships with their local arts and heritage organizations to foster artistic and cultural expression in Canada.

This is why the Conservative government so proudly supports the arts and culture in Canada.

[Mauril Bélanger, Liberal, Ottawa—Vanier, ON]

Mr. Speaker, it would be better if the member at least pretended he believed in what he was reading. That way we could perhaps all feel a little more enthusiastic than we do.

To say that the tax exemption provided in the budget or to try to indicate that it would be directed to arts is rather misleading. There are 160,000 charities and non-profit organizations that could benefit from that. It is very obvious that it is not all going to go to the arts and the government is walking away.

As a matter of fact, to continue on this, Richard Bradshaw of the Canadian Opera Company said:

This is a scandal...They've shrunk $300 million to $50 million. When will Canada grow up and realize that the arts are central to the health of the whole society?

We have only $50 million for the Canada Council, instead of the $300 million that was insinuated during the campaign. We have $250 million for prisons and a billion dollars to arm border agents. There is no additional money for the CBC/Société Radio-Canada, nothing for the Canadian Television Fund and the government has shrunk $300 million to $50 million only for the Canada Arts Council. That is not being very supportive of the arts.

[Jim Abbott, Conservative, Kootenay—Columbia, BC]

Mr. Speaker, this probably underlines the difference between a Liberal and a Conservative. From a Liberal's perspective, if it is not taxpayers' dollars that are going out to fund particular organizations, then what in the world are we going to do.

The attitude of myself and my Conservative fellows is very simply that we have to engage more people in the support of arts, artists and art organizations. We can get them more involved by getting them more involved financially and building a pool of up to $300 million. By building that pool, we not only have the cash resources, but we also have the involvement of the people who are actually making those contributions.

This means that the arts community and cultural industries will thrive as a result of the further engagement of the individuals rather than always going back to the tax trough where the Liberals consistently want to derive their money.

[The Acting Speaker, Conservative, Andrew Scheer]

The motion to adjourn the House is now deemed to have been adopted. Accordingly, this House stands adjourned until tomorrow at 2 p.m., pursuant to Standing Order 24(1).

(The House adjourned at 7:22 p.m.)