Supporting Jobs & Growth

On March 29th, our Government introduced Economic Action Plan 2012. It is a prudent, long-term plan to grow Canada’s economy, create jobs, and get back to balanced budgets (more information about Economic Action Plan 2012 is available online at www.budget.gc.ca).

When discussing this Plan, we must consider it in a global context. We all know that, with the help of our Government’s Economic Action Plan, Canada’s economy has performed well relative to other countries in recent years. Job creation in Canada has been the strongest among G-7 countries with over 765,000 net new jobs created since July 2009. Canada’s economic growth leads the G-7 as forecasted by independent organizations such as the IMF and the OECD. Canada also has the lowest debt level ratio in the G-7 – by far.

However, the global economy remains a different story. In Europe, tremendous economic challenges remain, of which we are reminded all too frequently. In the United States – our largest trading partner – the economy continues to struggle.

In these uncertain times, Canada’s economic stability depends on the implementation of a clear plan to safeguard our economy. This situation demands Canada not be complacent. We cannot allow political gridlock and instability to stall vital economic and fiscal reforms – as witnessed in the US and Europe.

As the challenges our economy faces are not small or one-dimensional, neither is our plan. Economic Action Plan 2012 is comprehensive and ambitious because it must respond to the magnitude of the threats Canada faces in an uncertain period of global economic turbulence and a rapidly changing global marketplace.

Economic Action Plan 2012 includes numerous measures to create jobs, strengthen our local economies, and position Canada to compete in the global economy now and over the long-term.

Our Government is supporting job creation by stream-lining the regulatory process for major economic projects and extending the hiring credit for small business, to help local businesses hire more workers.

Our Government is eliminating barriers to participation in the work-force by providing new support to Canadians with disabilities who want to be part of the workforce and assisting youth to increase their skill-set and connecting them with available jobs.

Our Government is encouraging business innovation by supporting value-added internships and helping local businesses invest in research and development.

Our Government is eliminating wasteful and duplicative spending of taxpayers’ dollars through initiatives such as modernizing our currency by doing-away with the penny; a measure which has long been overdue.

The positive and targeted measures we take today, to help support jobs, growth and long-term prosperity, will shape the Canada we all want for tomorrow.