Mr. Speaker, I am pleased today to rise and speak to this motion that calls on the government to provide a detailed breakdown to Canadians on how the money earmarked for security for the G8 and G20 summits is being spent and an explanation of how the security budget was permitted to spiral out of control.
I wanted to speak to this motion because it relates to one of the key elements of the government's campaign promises to Canadians: more accountability and more transparency
This issue is a glaring example of precisely the opposite by the government: significantly less accountability, significantly less transparency. In fact, I would go so far as to say that the government has perfected the art of secrecy and offered no greater accountability than the previous government.
This past April, in a report entitled “Out of Time”, the interim Information Commissioner gave more than half of the 24 government departments reviewed either a below average or a failing grade for compliance with access to information. In fact, the Department of Foreign Affairs received an overall red alert rating for its deplorable handling of information requests.
Is it any wonder that after four years in office a majority of Canadians still do not trust the government or the Prime Minister? Worst still, the government promised Canadians that it is a better manager of the public purse. Instead, Canadians have been treated to moves like wiping out the more than $57 billion in contributions made by workers and employers off the books of the employment insurance fund while providing billions in corporate tax cuts. Talk about misguided priorities.
I guess we should not expect anything else from the Conservative government. That money belonged to the workers and employers. As well the government has built into its own budget projections an increase in the EI payroll tax, which will generate a surplus that could reach $24 billion by 2020. The Canadian Federation of Independent Business has said that the tax hike will cause a loss of 200,000 jobs.
I have unemployed workers in my riding of Nickel Belt who are running out of employment insurance benefits or have run out and cannot get the retraining they need. Our communities have been disproportionately hit by the recession. What an insult to the hard-working families of Nickel Belt.
New Democrats believe there should be no payroll tax increase until the previous $57 billion surplus is paid back. At least $7 billion of that was accumulated under the government's watch. I could list countless other examples of the lack of accountability and transparency.
However, to return to this particular issue, we need to understand how the government's own estimates of spending on security for the G8 and G20 could spiral from $179 million to almost $1 billion in just three months. It is absolutely outrageous.
Ask any Canadian whether this latest blunder meets the test of improved accountability and transparency. When they have calmed down from being outraged, their answer will no doubt be a resounding no.
It is hard to fathom that security for a three day summit will cost more than the security for all 17 days of the Vancouver Olympics. For comparative purposes here are some numbers on the Olympics. There were about 5,500 Olympic Games athletes and officials; approximately 1,350 Paralympic Games athletes and officials; 10,000 media representatives.
Remarkably, the government now tells Canadians that it is about to spend $1 billion on a three day event. What burns me and what burns many constituents is the fact that the money could be more efficiently spent on programs for Canadians.
In four years the government has abandoned so many citizens. As my colleague, the member for Sackville—Eastern Shore, has pointed out, we now have veterans turning to food banks. That is scandalous. Our aboriginal people living on reserves are among the poorest of the poor in this country. That is unacceptable.
My colleagues from Halifax and Churchill have spoken about the fact that funding for aboriginal friendship centres has not been renewed.
My colleague from London—Fanshawe has spoken eloquently about the lack of support for women in this country.
My colleague from Sault Ste. Marie has rung the alarm bells about the sorry poverty in this country.
A report released last month by Citizens for Public Justice noted that 3.9 million Canadians are poor, an increase of 900,000 from 2007, including 160,000 more children. It also noted that last year, nearly half the unemployed did not even qualify for EI benefits, and 777,400 unemployed Canadians were not receiving EI. Further, it noted that social assistance caseload increased in all 10 provinces, with Alberta, Ontario and British Columbia seeing increases greater than 20%.
What is lacking here is federal leadership. The Conservative government is not here to serve the people. It is here to fly planes to Tim Hortons. The Conservatives probably think they need the $1 billion in security to protect themselves from the ever-growing ranks of the poor.
If I had more time, I could provide even more examples of where this money could be better spent. Thank goodness for New Democrat MPs who stand in the House, day in and day out, highlighting the unfairness of the government, providing clear, insightful direction on how public money could be better spent.
In this country there is a desperate need for real federal leadership, for real investment in people and communities. Instead, the government siphons off billions from employment insurance, money taken directly from the workers to fill part of a giant revenue shortfall created by billions in corporate tax giveaways.
In summary, this latest occasion for Conservative mismanagement only serves to remind Canadians that the Conservatives are not good fiscal managers, but rather they have become great at mismanaging public money. We need answers; we need them now.
