Madam Speaker, I would like to thank the member for Newmarket—Aurora for sharing her time with me this morning. This is my first opportunity to speak to my fellow Canadians, the citizens of Alberta, and the great people of my riding of Red Deer.
I want to thank my constituents for their overwhelming support and I pledge to continue to work hard on their behalf. I also want to thank my wife, Judy, our daughter Megan and her husband Hanno, as well as our son, Devin, for all of their love and support.
It was nearly a year ago to the day that my good friend, the former MP for Red Deer, Bob Mills, announced that he would not be seeking re-election. I know how much the people of Red Deer meant to him and I will strive to serve them with the same grace and compassion. I also want to thank the hundreds of volunteers who helped me during the last election. Their enthusiasm and dedication will not be forgotten.
My father, the late Herman Dreeshen, passed away last November 21. I was so thankful that he was able to share in my election celebrations in October but even more thankful that I could relate to him the majesty and the history of this House. I was able to tell him of the great sense of pride and responsibility that I felt as I placed my name in the text scroll during my signing-in ceremony. It was not just my name but the recognition of my family, my community, and my great country that made it so special for us both. For that I will be eternally grateful. It is with that same sense of pride that I today participate in this budget debate.
Red Deer is a vibrant city, half way between Calgary and Edmonton. The city is surrounded by Red Deer County, which includes numerous bustling towns and villages, along with some of the best agricultural land in Canada. My constituency's western boundary boasts the world renowned Markerville Creamery, home of the first Icelandic settlement in North America, and is bound on the north and east by the beautiful Red Deer River.
One will find the most cowboy friendly rodeo in Canada which is held every year just north of InnisfaiI and the Daines Rodeo Ranch, where Jack Daines, western Canada's Don Cherry, will tell anyone who will listen how fortunate we are to live in the greatest country in the world next to the greatest neighbours in the world.
Besides the mix of innovative businesses and creative and talented artists, we are also blessed with many fine recreational areas including the Canyon ski hill, Sylvan Lake, Gleniffer Lake and my home of Pine Lake.
Agriculture continues to be one of the real strengths of our community. The hard-working men and women who look after our livestock industry and grow our crops have shown not only innovation but also perseverance in difficult economic times.
The initiatives in our economic action plan will help ensure our agricultural community will not only survive but will flourish. We put $500 million for an agriculture flexibility program that will help the sector adapt to pressures and improve its competitiveness. We have $50 million over three years to strengthen our slaughterhouse capacity. By expanding the Farm Improvement and Marketing Cooperative Loans Act, we will help make credit available to new farmers, support intergenerational farm transfers, and modify eligibility criteria for agricultural cooperatives.
Red Deer's regional airport is an important transportation hub ensuring trade and passenger air traffic flows quickly and effectively, and is expanding its service to meet the present and future needs of our communities.
Central Alberta has one of the finest colleges in Canada, Red Deer College. In addition to being a sports juggernaut in volleyball and hockey, it boasts one of the finest academic teams as well. RDC has also embarked on a trades opportunity and visual arts program with amazing technical support being available for the community to access. RDC is also preparing for its next exciting phase, that being the centres for health, wellness and sport. All of western Canada will be served by this exciting new addition.
Our government's commitment to communities, both big and small, will help central Alberta in its management of waste water facilities as well as enhance its recreational, arts and cultural expansions. Our community looks forward to infrastructure funding going into roads and bridge construction as well as new endeavours that will take advantage of the new clean energy fund designed to support clean energy research and development.
The meetings I held throughout the riding with mayors, councils, business and community leaders, as well as the collective wisdom of individuals helped create an economic action plan that is truly the collaboration of voices of Canadians.
As a new member of Parliament, I was pleased to be part of these deliberations. Our government has been looking after the interests of Canadians since it was first elected in 2006. It realized there was a potential problem looming on the horizon and set a course to put the affairs of the nation in order, so that Canada would be able to react properly in the expected economic slowdown.
We did this with a series of measures, some supported by the opposition and some not, but measures that have nonetheless been recognized throughout the world as being right for the times. The reduction of the GST as well as income and corporate taxes has ensured that money has stayed in the hands of Canadian families. The stimulus created by these actions created an opportunity to reduce the national debt by $37 billion while continuing to ensure more money to provinces and municipalities for their core services.
These actions have created a debt to GDP ratio that has been kept in check and is the envy of the developed world. All Canadians have a right to be proud of this success. This is why Canadians can be confident that just as we were the last to enter this global economic slowdown we will emerge from it the soonest and we will be affected the least. In this budget, we are now able to focus on strategic investments in roads, bridges, support for displaced workers, as well as support for agriculture and tourism. These focused investments, as outlined in our economic action plan, will soon spur economic growth throughout our nation.
I would like to draw attention to some other specific points that have been introduced in this economic action plan that were specifically addressed through the local consultation process to me by my constituents. They emphasized the need to have stimulus that is timely, beginning within the next 120 days; that is targeted, reaching those Canadian businesses and families most in need; and above all, temporary, such as that it can be phased-out in order to avoid long-term structural deficits.
My constituents also spoke of improving access to financing for business and consumers, so that ongoing projects designed to grow and create new jobs are not put in jeopardy. They also pointed out that this would be an excellent time to invest in training for those individuals who will be moving out of one industry or profession and into another. Wise use of training dollars delivered through the EI program, additional funds to temporarily expand the Canada scholarship program, as well as an investment in our colleges and universities was seen as a prudent plan to deal with both present and future employment opportunities.
In closing, please allow me to speak candidly to my fellow members of Parliament. I hold this House, its tradition and its responsibilities to our nation in the highest regard. It is incumbent upon all of us to listen to the views of our constituents and all Canadians in order to honestly and effectively represent them. They do not want political games. They want us to put away our partisanship, to stand up for our communities and our neighbours who need a helping hand, and to use this time to work together in order to emerge from this current economic malaise stronger than ever.
That is what I am going to do. In this time of global economic uncertainty, I am going to speak out for my constituents, my country, and let the world know that Canada is a leader, that Canada is a beacon of hope, and that Canada will chart the course for the future, not just for us but for the entire world.
