Budget out-of-step with Canadian families: Layton

OTTAWA – New Democrat Leader Jack Layton says the government’s budget is still out-of-step with Canadian families, particularly the sixty per cent of Canadians who didn’t vote Conservative.

“The majority of Canadians rejected the Conservative platform in the last election,” said Layton. “This continued emphasis on tax giveaways to the most profitable corporations over targeted job creation is not what Canadian families need right now.”

Layton said the Conservatives have failed to present a plan for fixing frontline health care, lifting seniors out of poverty, strengthening public pensions or rewarding businesses that create jobs.

The government also released yet another set of figures for deficit reduction today, and how much they are planning to cut, but still fail to provide any detail about which services or programs they are planning to cut.

“Draining the treasury by billions of dollars every year helping out profitable oil companies and banks won’t guarantee a single new job is created,” said Layton. “It does guarantee money will be drained away from the things Canadians count on every day, like health care and infrastructure.”

Though disappointed with the budget’s lack of help for families, Layton did welcome the decision to finally compensate Quebec for implementing the Harmonized Sales Tax and for reinstating the EcoEnergy Home Retrofit Program – measures that New Democrats had asked for in previous budget discussions.