Mr. Speaker, I would like to thank the constituents of Saskatoon—Rosetown—Biggar for putting their faith in me to represent them as their member of Parliament. I would also like to thank all of those who volunteered last fall, as well as my family members for their ongoing support.
Canada's economic action plan, budget 2009 is the result of weeks of consultation with thousands of Canadians. In preparation for this plan the Minister of Finance not only consulted widely with Canadians but obtained advice and input from some of the leading economic and financial minds in our country. This is truly an economic action plan for all Canadians.
As the finance minister was travelling across the country consulting Canadians, I was also travelling across my constituency consulting the people of Saskatoon—Rosetown—Biggar. As an aside, I would like to take this opportunity to thank the Minister of Finance for coming to Saskatoon and listening to the people of Saskatchewan.
I went from meeting with residents and business and community leaders from the west side of Saskatoon, to hosting community meetings in the towns scattered throughout the rural part of the riding, to door knocking in the villages and hamlets that did not have a town hall to go to. Through these consultations I met with a wide range of people.
The people of Saskatoon—Rosetown—Biggar want this government to get on with the business of governing and they want this economic action plan to pass. Canada's economic action plan is economically stimulating, job creating and tax reducing. This plan finds the right balance.
There was a common theme in what I heard and what this government heard, namely, that investment in Canadian communities by way of roads, bridges and other projects is a good way to stimulate the economy and create prosperity for the future. This government is committed to following this advice in as quick a fashion as possible so that the stimulus provided for in this plan gets out into the Canadian economy to promote growth and job creation.
This government is stimulating the economy and creating jobs by investing in social housing. At this time of global economic uncertainty our government is committed to ensuring that the citizens who need assistance the most will receive it. This is why we are investing $1 billion over two years to renovate and retrofit existing social housing units on a fifty-fifty cost share basis with the provinces. These additional funds for social housing are another example of this government investing in the future.
This economic action plan also dedicates $400 million over two years for the construction of housing units for low-income seniors. Our seniors have worked many years to build this great country of ours, yet rising costs have made affordable housing difficult for some. We have heard their concerns and have acted prudently to address them.
These examples of this government's care and compassion for those who need a helping hand are just some of the reasons I support Canada's economic action plan.
I am also very pleased to see that this government is supporting prairie farmers and indeed all Canadian farmers by partnering with the provinces, territories and industry. It is contributing $500 million to the agricultural flexibility plan which will assist farmers in dealing with the fluctuating costs of production, promote new innovations in farming practices and equipment, ensure environmental sustainability, and provide a resource for farmers when they are faced with market challenges or opportunities.
I am also very glad to find that this economic action plan includes an additional $50 million over three years for the expansion of slaughtering capacity in Canada. The expansion of domestic slaughtering capacity will allow our producers to be less reliant on foreign slaughterhouses and will make our livestock producers less susceptible to commodity price fluctuations caused by regulations imposed by foreign governments.
This government is also supporting Canada's livestock industry by creating a market access secretariat to work towards expanding the market for Canadian products beyond the U.S. into other promising and potentially lucrative markets.
This investment and these other initiatives will not only help our cattle producers, but will create jobs, both now and in the future.
During a time of economic downturn, this government realizes that Canadians and Canadian businesses are hurting. We understand that when businesses are hurting, they cannot give their hard-working employees the raises they would like to.
Therefore, our government is giving a tax break to middle and lower income Canadians. Canada's economic action plan will increase the basic personal exemption amount by $620 to $10,320 for 2009. This action will directly benefit our most economically disadvantaged and those just entering the job market.
This action plan will again benefit lower income Canadians and, indeed, all Canadians by increasing the top of the first personal income tax bracket in 2009, as well as increasing the top of the second personal income tax bracket. Our government understands that this global downturn has been forced on Canada and should not be borne by hard-working taxpayers.
I believe that this economic action plan is right for Canada, right for Saskatchewan and right for Saskatoon—Rosetown—Biggar. It is right for men and it is right for women. It is right for upper income Canadians and it is right for lower income Canadians. It is right for employers and it is right for workers.
I encourage all hon. members of the House to pass Canada's economic action plan budget 2009 next week.