Mr. Speaker, Canada now has the lowest overall tax rate on new business investment among major advanced economies. This is a significant advantage for Canada in the global economy. It is helping to create and preserve jobs in communities across the country, now and for the long term.
Because we made responsible choices, when the global economic recession hit we were able to respond decisively. We implemented one of the largest and most effective economic stimulus plans among the nations of the G20. We made historic investments in infrastructure. We encouraged businesses to invest and helped them to avoid layoffs. We made substantial new investments in skills training. We extended support for workers who lost their jobs. We did all of this without creating permanent new bureaucracies. We did it without taking on the massive debts and long-term deficits now faced by many other countries. We did it without raising taxes.
As a result, in these difficult years Canada has outperformed most other industrialized countries. But still, we remain concerned about the number of Canadians out of work. In response, this budget contains measures to create new, high quality jobs.
Still, it is important to remember that Canada is one of only two G7 countries to have recouped all of the jobs lost during the global recession. In fact, since July 2009, our economy has created more than 610,000 net new jobs.
The World Economic Forum says our banks are the soundest in the world. Forbes magazine ranks Canada as the best place in the world for businesses to grow and create jobs. Our net debt-to-GDP ratio remains the lowest in the G7, and the lowest by far. The OECD and the IMF predict our economy will be among the leaders of the industrialized world over the next two years.
Canadians appreciate the fact that our country is outperforming our peers. They also understand that the global economy remains fragile. They know that our traditional trading partners face serious long-term economic challenges. In addition, Canadians are aware that our country faces challenges of its own. We need to promote innovation more effectively, to keep creating good quality jobs. We need to plan for the rapid aging of our population to secure our long-term prosperity.
Many Canadians are concerned about whether they will have enough money for their retirement. They wonder whether our social programs will be there when they need them. They ask whether there will be good jobs and a higher quality of life for themselves and for their children.
In response to these concerns, there are some who would raise taxes, increase government spending and shun new trading opportunities. These short-sighted, irresponsible and dangerous policies would kill jobs, impose crushing deficits and cripple our economy. They would squander Canada’s advantage. Eventually they would make our social programs unsustainable.
We see it in the very difficult circumstances in which Greece and some other European countries now find themselves. These policies would turn us away from long-term prosperity, down a path of long-term decline.
Our government will not allow that to happen. We will stay on course, to keep creating high quality jobs and long-term economic growth for Canadians. We will not raise taxes. We will maintain our consistent, pragmatic and responsible approach to the economy. We will take the necessary next steps to build confidence in our future.
Canadians need to be confident in our prospects for economic growth. This is the key not only to creating good jobs but also to sustaining our social programs and improving our quality of life. Canadians also need to know that their government will be able to respond boldly to any future economic crises originating outside our borders. To provide this confidence, we must ensure that Canada’s finances are sustainable over the long term. To that end, we will fulfill the commitment we made in the economic action plan budget of 2009, to return to balanced budgets in the medium term.
We are on track. In less than two years, we have already cut the deficit in half. We did it by ending our targeted and temporary stimulus measures and by controlling the rate of growth of new spending.
Now in this budget, we will take the next step. We will implement moderate restraints in government spending. The vast majority of the savings will come from eliminating waste in the internal operations of government, making it leaner and more efficient.
For example, our government will do what everyone agrees should have been done long ago, we will eliminate the penny.