Harper to balance books on the backs of provinces

The Harper Government was pleased with a recent report from the PBO stating long term federal finances were “sustainable” with “substantial fiscal room.”

But Harper didn't seem to mind that the report also said this long-term fiscal health was to be achieved by “downloading billions of dollars of health-care costs on the provinces”:

“The federal fiscal structure has been transformed … to sustainable — with substantial fiscal room — largely through spending restraint and reform of the Canada Health Transfer Escalator. However, the federal fiscal room created by the change in the CHT escalator has transferred the fiscal burden to provinces and territories.”

Creative Accounting

Harper is using an accounting trick to bleed the provinces dry, incrementally.

He is tying the growth of healthcare transfers to nominal GDP growth which is projected to be lower than the expected 4.9% annual growth of health care costs.

According to the National Post, this will “gut nearly $36 billion in funding to the provinces over the 10-year deal and will erode public health services to all Canadians.“

Even right-wing pundits like Andrew Coyne and Kelly McParland say the provinces are getting a raw deal.

Conclusion

In order to stop this corrupt neo-con “starve the beast” agenda, we must implement voting reform when opposition parties oust Harper in 2015.

The fact is three-way center-left vote splitting weakens opposition parties allowing the Cons to win most elections, even though the vast majority is opposed to them.

Justin Trudeau's simple reform of ranked ballot voting will ensure that Canadians — not neo-cons — determine our country's future.