Getting Things Done in Ottawa … Finally!

October 4, 2006

Though I’m reluctant to consume space in my weekly newspaper column to dispel the inaccuracies and misinformation of others (whether it’s deliberate or due to misunderstanding), I have an obligation to ensure my constituents are informed with the facts.

And the fact is that our new Conservative government is doing precisely what you elected us to do … spend more delivering services and benefits to hard-working, overtaxed Canadians and less on bureaucracy and bloated government.

A colossal number of incorrect figures and details have been reported concerning federal savings announced September 25th by our Finance Minister, Jim Flaherty. That money has been re-directed to debt repayment and tax cuts to put more money in your pocket.

However, the opposition parties have been screaming about ‘so-called’ cuts to essential programs and services. Don’t believe everything you hear.

The first myth that spread rapidly through our constituency in particular was that Conservatives were cutting pine beetle funding. In my column last week, I dispelled that myth by pointing out that we had actually increased beetle funding to the tune of $1-BILLION!

Another ‘non’-cut concerns museums. Canadian Heritage spends $11.8-million each year on the Museum Assistance Program. By finding ways to deliver and operate the program more efficiently, our government has found savings of $2.3-million per year. This does not mean that museums will be getting less money. On the contrary, the Conservative government has invested a total of $245.3-million on museums.

Then there are the misconceptions about federal spending on adult literacy programs. Again, due to the way the programs are delivered and over-lapping services with regional and provincial literacy programs, we found $17.7-million in savings. Our investment of $81-million will re-focus on areas of core federal responsibility to help groups that need this program the most, such as Aboriginal Peoples, people with disabilities, immigrants, and EI claimants.

And finally, the opposition parties would like you to believe that we’ve cut women’s programs. However, we made administrative changes at the federal department of the Status of Women. Programs for women will not be cut.

We’ve already been far more aggressive than the previous Liberal government in protecting women against violence; giving children a safe family home without abuse; helping older women escape poverty; and making sure immigrant women are able to use their foreign credentials to contribute to Canadian society.

One of the primary reasons I joined politics was to clean-up government so that it meets the needs of Canadians and not bureaucrats. Since we took office in February, our Conservative government has been reviewing every program to find ways to deliver services to you more efficiently.

We’re not done with this housekeeping yet, but I’m proud of the fiscal responsibility and solid stewardship of your tax dollars that we already demonstrated in last month’s financial announcement.

In the coming weeks and months, if you actually find that any of those administrative efficiencies, which have been the subject of so much opposition fear-mongering, result in you receiving reduced service or having less money in your pocket, I want to know about it. Please call, write or email me the details.