Mr. Speaker, I will be sharing my time with the member for Winnipeg South.
It is an honour for me to address the House today on the occasion of the debate on this historic document, the 1997 federal budget. There is a light at the end of the tunnel when one reads this budget and it is not the light of a freight train barrelling toward us. It is the light of hope which is shining for the future of our country which includes our young people.
It is interesting to note, especially for our critics on the other side-it is their job to criticize-that during this whole exercise of the past three years of deficit cutting, cutting of programs, of cutting back fairly deeply through the fat and into the bone in our expenditures on the federal side, the United Nations has consistently named Canada the number one country in the world. That is something we should all dwell upon for a few minutes before we start criticizing the work that our finance minister and our Prime Minister have done over the past three years.
I will quote from some of the press comments from my province of Prince Edward Island that the budget has received. The editorialist from the General Pioneer in Summerside said ``With our lower than expected deficit, Mr. Martin resisted the pressure to institute a widespread tax cut. For that he is to be commended. The cuts that are still working their way through the system have been hard on all Canadians. A tax cut, although it would be appreciated at tax time, would simply drive the deficit back up and wipe out what has been accomplished''.
The editorialist went on to say that there is little doubt this is a pre-election budget. However, a key qualifier to be added is a pre-election budget for the 1990s: "Prime Minister Chrétien and his finance minister have concluded, and rightly so we suggest, that Canadians are in no mood for big spending promises that can't realistically be kept".
When the editorialist mentioned the pre-election budget for the 1990s, I am sure he was comparing that with pre-election budgets of the past where governments were tempted to come in with big spending programs in an effort to buy people's votes with their own money. Our finance minister in this regard in this election year has resisted the temptation to buy votes with the people's own money.
This government has accomplished quite a record over the past number of years. It inherited a $42 billion annual deficit. It inherited a legacy of high interest rates. It inherited a reputation among the G7, the western developed countries, and indeed among other less fortunate countries as being Mexico north.
In a short, record setting period of time we have decreased the deficit 34 per cent in one year. That is probably the biggest deficit reduction in the shortest time in the history of the world. We are getting the deficit under control.
We are a stone's throw away from a balanced budget. In the next couple of years we will see for the first time in many decades a balanced budget.
The Ottawa Citizen led off its editorial after the budget by saying: ``The finance minister, Paul Martin, deserves real credit, if not necessarily for yesterday's budget, then for his four years of fiscal tutelage. His is a record of historic achievement''. I think we can all agree with what the finance minister has done over the past four years to earn those accolades.
Let us take a look at some of the budget measures which have generated a positive response. First I would like to address jobs.
In this budget $2 billion more are being dedicated for small business to begin, to grow and to create more jobs. In addition, if businesses use the new hiring program and expand their workforce, they will have a holiday from paying EI premiums. They will not have to pay any EI premiums for the first year and they will have a 25 per cent reduction in the second year.
As far as Prince Edward Island is concerned, this measure could not have come at a better time. There will be $95 million available for the tourism sector. The new Confederation bridge will be opening on June 1 and I am sure that every member of the House will be there.
Normally 700,000 to 800,000 tourist visitors coming to our province each year. This year we are expecting one million visitors. A lot of islanders are not yet prepared for the influx of people who will be visiting our province after the bridge opens. Therefore, these tourism dollars will come in very handy for a lot of our tourist operators. They will be able to expand and to begin new tourist operations to facilitate one million visitors this year.
The infrastructure program will help to create jobs. Some critics have been very hard on the infrastructure program. They wonder why we have extended it for another year and why we put another $425 million into it.
In my riding some of the small communities would not have been financially able to develop some of their projects if it was not for federal and provincial money. For example, in the town of Alberton, in the western end of my riding, $365,000 was generated to replace sewer lines, sidewalks, paving and ditching. Without the dollars of the federal initiative, the other two-thirds would not
have been spent. It is certainly a relief for the taxpayers of that town.
In the village of O'Leary, half a million dollars went into renovating an old hospital that had been closed. The village needed a new village office and a new fire station. They were able to access the infrastructure program and right now they have a beautiful building.
Also there were small projects in very small districts like St. Felix, St. Nicholas and St. Louis where anywhere from $8,000 to $15,000 was spent in much needed community improvement.
In the town of Summerside, which is the largest town in my riding, there is now a new city of Summerside because of the amalgamation that took place with Wilmot and St. Eleanors. All the new money has been added to their share of the infrastructure program. Well over $2.5 million has been spent there.
A total of 200 jobs have been created in my riding. If anyone thinks 200 jobs are not needed, then they are sadly mistaken in criticizing this program.
I want to commend the government on its initiative on the disabled. This initiative was caucus driven, led by the member from Fredericton who has been working very hard on it. There was full caucus support for his efforts.
Many of our disabled are helped by expanded tax deductions for medical expenses. These include increased deductions for part time attendants, increased deductions for vans used for wheelchair transportation as well as for medically required air conditioners and altered driveways. Individuals who come under the umbrella of the organizations for the disabled in Summerside-Tignish and area will benefit by the initiatives found in Tuesday's budget.
It is our record of staying the course, of remaining consistent and focused that has brought us to the point where we can initiate some selective spending programs. We have turned the corner. The time of announcing new cuts is over.
We are about to reap the rewards of the sacrifices of the past four years. The tax cuts that we all want are now possible without jeopardizing our recovery.
