February 26, 2014
Fairmont Chateau-Laurier
Check against delivery
I have to say it's an honour to be counted among the many illustrious guests who have addressed your organization about the important issues of our times.
As President of the Treasury Board of Canada, one such issue is ensuring Canada remains one of the world's most successful nations.
To do that, we need to understand where we've come from just as much as where we're going.
Canada's history is the story of people who came from every corner of the globe with dreams of a better life, of working hard, raising their families and building communities.
Today, we take pride in the achievements that forged our country.
And just recently in Sochi, when our Olympic champions stepped up to accept their medals, we took pride in the hard work that got them to the podium.
Our Government knows that the people of Canada can achieve great things, and we want them to succeed.
That's why, over the last three years, we have focused on reducing the deficit and balancing the budget – an approach we have continued in Economic Action Plan 2014.
Today, I'd like to highlight some of the key measures in the budget that will help Canadian businesses continue to grow our country.
To begin with, the deficit is expected to decline to $2.9 billion this fiscal year, and we'll be looking for a surplus of more than $6 billion next fiscal year in 2015-2016.
That's even after taking into account a $3 billion annual adjustment for risk.
At the same time, federal transfers that provide important income support to individuals, such as Old Age Security and Employment Insurance, as well as major transfers to other levels of government, including those for social programs and health care, will continue to grow.
But returning to a balanced budget is not an end in itself. It provides a host of benefits that go well beyond the bottom line.
It frees up taxpayer dollars that might otherwise be spent on interest costs to lower taxes and invest in the priorities of Canadians.
It helps keep interest rates low, instilling confidence in consumers and investors, whose dollars spur economic growth and job creation.
It strengthens our country's ability to respond to longer-term challenges, such as population aging and unexpected global economic shocks.
And it helps ensure fairness and equity for generations of Canadians to come, by avoiding future tax increases or reductions in services.
In short, balanced budgets signal stability and pave the road to prosperity.
We are taking concrete actions to help businesses, and the Canadians who run them.
Small businesses, in particular, are crucial to our long-term prosperity.
To succeed, they need an environment of low taxes and minimal red tape. And our Government is committed to creating that.
A good example is the legislation I introduced last month to enshrine the One-for-One Rule in law.
This legislation would control the administrative burden on business by having regulators remove a regulation each time they introduce a new one that imposes a burden.
Under this rule, which has been in effect since April 2012, the administrative burden on businesses in Canada was reduced by almost $20 million by December 2013.
This represents 98,000 hours saved annually.
This reform to our regulatory system is just one part of our Red Tape Reduction Action Plan – a plan that will increase Canadian competitiveness and free business to innovate, invest, grow and create jobs.
This plan gets rid of business irritants in areas ranging from tax and payroll to labour and trade, and introduces time-saving measures like single windows and electronic submissions.
It makes the regulatory process as pain-free as possible, and is one of the most important things we can do to help businesses thrive, particularly in a time of continuing global economic uncertainty.
Over the next year, our Government will continue cutting red tape with system-wide reforms and actions targeting specific issues that frustrate businesses and stifle innovation.
For example, we will continue to reduce the red tape burden for tax compliance.
In fact, we're already well down that road.
We want to make it as easy as possible for businesses to prepare, file and pay taxes.
We're proposing to cut the maximum number of payments that more than 50,000 businesses have to prepare and submit to the Canada Revenue Agency, and in doing so eliminate the requirement for more than 800,000 payments.
We also recognize, of course, that taxes absorb dollars that could be used by business owners to seize opportunities to invest, grow and create new jobs.
As a result, as announced in Economic Action Plan 2014, further tax relief for small businesses will be a priority for the Government following the return to balanced budgets.
Those are just a few of the benefits for business contained in our budget.
We are also helping to spur innovation through our Open Data initiative.
This initiative is about using Open Data to achieve greater openness and accountability, drive innovation and advance economic opportunities.
For those of you who may not know, Open Data is valuable government information that can improve the lives of Canadians through both its original use, and by repurposing it to expand its reach and effectiveness.
But instead of locking it away in the vault, where its economic value goes untapped, we're making it freely available for Canadians to re-use for commercial, scientific and research purposes.
In fact, I will be joining students and tech entrepreneurs in Toronto this weekend for our first-ever CODE (Canadian Open Data Experience) appathon.
This is a 48-hour coding challenge that will result in Open Data being turned into beneficial and user-friendly apps.
By promoting technological advances through increased use of apps and tools, our government expects new businesses, economic expansion and fresh opportunities to arise.
Using federal government Open Data in new technologies will save time and be more efficient while aligning with our emphasis on innovation and job creation.
And that's just the beginning.
In Economic Action Plan 2014, we also propose to provide $3 million over three years for the creation of the Open Data Institute in Waterloo.
This will help ensure that Canada captures the commercial opportunities presented by Open Data.
Finally, we are acting to ensure government spending is more efficient and effective, so Canadians get more value for their tax dollars.
Direct program spending has fallen for three consecutive years – for the first time in decades – and in 2012-2013, was more than $5 billion lower than it was in 2009-2010.
Our record speaks for itself.
As part of the three-year operating budget freeze we put in place in 2010, we froze the salaries of the Prime Minister, Cabinet Ministers, Members of Parliament and Senators. And we put a ceiling on the overall budget of Ministers' offices.
That freeze on operating spending was reintroduced for another two years in last October's Speech from the Throne.
This will encourage departments and agencies to continue to find new ways of doing business and be more efficient with their existing resources.
We also put a cap on travel and hospitality costs within the public service, and strengthened the rules around these activities.
What's more, in Economic Action Plan 2011, we launched a major review of departmental spending.
It was a big job that required all departments and agencies to examine every function and activity within their organizations to ensure relevance, effectiveness and value for money.
That review helped us refocus what the government does by reducing programs and functions that can be delivered in other ways.
It also helped us take significant steps to modernize and streamline the government's back-office, particularly by leveraging new technologies.
The heavy lifting was well worth it.
With this review exercise, our Government found $5.2-billion in ongoing annual savings, which included a reduction in federal employment of 19,200.
These spending reductions are contributing to a more productive, efficient and responsive government.
I'm also proud to say that we are the first government to tackle the issue of MPs' pensions.
For the first time, Members of Parliament will pay 50 per cent of the cost of their pension plans. At the same time, their retirement age will jump from the current 55 to 65-years of age.
Once fully implemented, the contributions of MPs will have nearly quadrupled from $11,060 to $38,796 a year.
We've also made changes to the pensions of public sector employees.
We moved to have public servants pay for half the costs of their pensions by 2017 and increase the retirement age for new hires from 60 to 65.
Together, these measures will save $2.6 billion over five years between now and the end of 2017-18, with ongoing annual savings of over $900 million.
I'm also proposing a move to an equal cost-sharing for the voluntary supplemental health care coverage of retired public servants.
As you know, Budget 2014 announced the Government's intention to pursue changes to the voluntary, supplemental Public Service Health Care Plan to ensure comparability with supplemental health care plans offered by large employers in the public and private sector.
The changes proposed by the Government will ensure that the plan is affordable and sustainable for public servants, retirees and taxpayers.
I notice we have members from the National Association of Federal Retirees with us today, and I am glad you are here.
For those who don't know how the process works, the forum for negotiations regarding the voluntary, supplemental Public Service Health Care Plan is the Partners' Committee of the National Joint Council.
The Association's continued participation in the Partners' Committee discussions remains very important as we work to shape the future of the plan.
I look forward to continuing our work with the Association regarding the Public Service Health Care Plan in the proper setting, which is the Partners' Committee.
I understand that the next Partners' Committee meeting will be taking place in the coming days.
Moving towards an equal cost-share for the health care plan means that on average, a federal retiree will see their contribution rise from $24 per month to $48.
In order to ensure it is not a burden for any retired public servants, any new measures will contain a provision to protect low-income individuals.
As lead negotiator on behalf of the Canadian taxpayer, I want to implement changes that are both fiscally responsible, and fair to government employees.
I intend to introduce short- and long-term disability plans that will help public servants get healthy quicker and back to work sooner.
The current system is outdated and functions poorly. For example, public servants would need 13 weeks of sick days before they can access long-term disability.
Over 65 percent of government employees do not have enough banked sick days to address short-term illnesses, leaving them without a safety net.
For employees who are suffering from health issues, or mental health issues, having to wait until they have banked enough paid sick days is unfair, and unsustainable.
Our goal is ensure public servants have a health care benefit system that works for them, while also protecting taxpayers who are footing the bill.
We know there is still more to do. But we are leaving no stone unturned in our effort to reduce government spending.
To that end, we are also putting in place new measures to improve government spending decisions and strengthen the government's ability to contain costs.
Under the leadership of Prime Minister Harper, our Government remains focused on creating jobs and growth, while keeping taxes low. Good economic management requires tough decisions, a focus on priorities, and sound judgment.
These things don't just happen. Budgets do not “balance themselves” and we will continue to make the decisions Canadians expect of us.
In closing, let me leave you with this thought.
Canadians can achieve great things. What matters is our determination, our dedication and our ability to go beyond our own challenges.
That's why we are pulling out all the stops to help you succeed.
We are balancing the budget and reducing the deficit.
We are stimulating job creation and growth.
We are investing in innovation and opening up new markets for our products and services.
And we're creating a high-performing and productive public service.
This is the way forward.
It will ensure that our children and their children will enjoy all the benefits that we enjoy and more – and that Canada remains a beacon to the world.
Thank you.
