The eyes of every Canadian will be on Budget 2009 on January 27, but first there is work to do.

Minister of Finance Jim Flaherty wants to hear from you. His department is preparing to process budget suggestions from Canadians until January 9, 2009. This is your chance to weigh in on which direction you would like to see Canada take in during these critical times. This federal government is soliciting your opinions to determine where you want to spend and where you want to save money.

Minister Flaherty met with provincial and territorial finance ministers on December 17 in Saskatoon to get the creative juices flowing, and several more consultations with invited parties are scheduled across the country.
All Canadians who are interested in sharing their thoughts via the Internet can go to the Finance Canada website at www.fin.gc.ca and click on “Budget 2009 Consultations.” You’ll see five different economic measures under consideration by the government, and you can rank them according to how you think the following measures should be prioritized:

• Investing in housing
• Expediting infrastructure spending
• Building strong and sustainable labour markets and training incentives
• Supporting traditional and emerging industrial sectors
• Improving access to credit
• Your own priority (space is provided to explain your idea)

The Finance Canada web page also has links to a presentation called “Fiscal Stimulus” that helps to explain how Canada’s economy evolved to where it is. So far, this government has reduced the federal debt by $37 billion; reduce taxes by $200 billion in 2007-08 and the next five years; reduced the tax rate on new businesses investment to the lowest in the G7 by 2010; and made historic investments in infrastructure, science and technology, education, and training.

Your input on Budget 2009 could also send a message to the three-party coalition government that is poised to bring down the government by voting against the budget at the end of January. Those parties will have reason to abandon their power grab if they realize that Budget 2009 reflects the priorities and input of hard-working Canadians from across the country.

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The audio version of Garry's December 22, 2008 op-ed column can be heard by clicking here