The budget to come

Just after the election bringing Stephen Harper to power I wrote a piece asking how a nation like Canada could remove a government like that of Paul Martin.

Canada had a healthy surplus, declining debt, low inflation, low unemployment and strong economic growth.

Why would such a blessed nation change governments?

I concluded we lost the Martin election for several reasons none of which had much to do with the quality of government. The Martin government did a pretty good job in the brief time it continued. That said, it presented horribly to the Country and the false taint of corruption sealed our fate.

In the three years since Harper came to office the surplus is gone (and that before the downturn), unemployment is rising and the economy is moving from technical recession to recession to depression.

My point is not that Harper's government has destroyed the economy. While I still say the GST cut was a bad idea there is no doubt that any government would be facing tough times. Deficit spending is necessary. We will need to look at foreign trading and protecting Canadian industry.

The question is whether the Conservatives are now up to the task. The signs are promising. Consulting with the opposition, admitting the need to run deficits and generally being more humble make up for some of last month's nonsense.
James Morton