Federal Government's Fall Economic Update
Neither Fiscally Responsible Nor Socially Responsible
On November 21, Minister of Finance Chrystia Freeland, who is also the Deputy Prime Minister, announced the government's fall economic update. She and Prime Minister Trudeau are touting it as "fiscally responsible." The week before it was released, Trudeau insisted on the importance of governments exercising fiscal restraint. Trudeau said, "We continue to deliver investments in Canadians while remaining responsible fiscally and have all the way through. And that's more of what I'm excited to share next week with the fall economic update – a demonstration that we know how to continue to be fiscally responsible while we make the investments that are going to grow the economy and support Canadians."
What does the government say are the investments that grow the economy?
According to the government, what investments are these that grow the economy? Two of the largest and growing expenditures of the federal budget are for the military and to service government debt. These two outsized expenditures are socially irresponsible and generate an enormous drain on the economy. They do not grow the economy.
Buying 88 U.S.-made Lockheed Martin F-35 fighter jets alone will cost Canadians $74 billion over the next four years pushing annual military spending past $30 billion. Annual interest payments on government debt are soaring past $50 billion on their way to $60 billion as the global moneylenders hike the interest rate. Around 40 per cent of government debt is held abroad, which means service payments on this portion directly leave the country and are a net drain. What happens to the other 60 per cent is generally a mystery and considered private property beyond government or public scrutiny.
These two largest government expenditures cannot be considered fiscally responsible let alone socially responsible. Cutting Canada's ties with the U.S. war economy would immediately increase the possibility of government spending in Canadian social programs and the productive economy generally. Putting a moratorium on servicing Canada's government debt and stopping all future borrowing from private moneylenders would provide another enormous amount of money that could be spent in a socially responsible manner.
The government's November 21 economic statement is neither fiscally nor socially responsible. To suggest otherwise is mere cover-up for the government's unacceptable anti-social aims in favour of narrow private interests.
This article was published in
Volume 53
Number 11 - November 2023
Article Link:
https://cpcml.ca/Tmlm2023/Articles/M530111.HTM
Website: www.cpcml.ca Email: editor@cpcml.ca