It's About People, Mr. Harper

The Conservatives will have to focus on helping Canada's most vulnerable citizens if they want the NDP on side for the spring budget.

As Finance Minister Jim Flaherty prepares to present his budget on March 22, the Conservative government has a real opportunity to get things done for those who need help the most.

In the last few months, I have been travelling this great country to hear what Canadians had to share with me. Their message was overwhelmingly clear: Ottawa is not working for them. They were asking how Stephen Harper can say the recession is over while they’re still hurting and their family budgets are being stretched to the breaking point.

And they are right. Canadians expect a lot from their leaders when they face difficult times. They expect us to put partisanship aside and get down to work. As elected representatives of the Canadian people, we all share a common responsibility. We have to defend the interests of Canadians – especially those who suffered most during the recession.

I recently had the opportunity to discuss New Democrats’ budget expectations with the prime minister. I reminded him of our collective responsibility to Canadians. That’s why I presented him with a set of reasonable and affordable proposals, which he can include in the upcoming budget. These measures are focused on taking the pressure off the Canadian family budget and making life more affordable for Canadians. These are the same practical solutions that I’ve been sharing with Canadians over the last few months.

We’ve asked Harper to help our most vulnerable seniors by making an affordable increase to their Guaranteed Income Supplement. Too many seniors who helped build this country still live in poverty. It is simply unacceptable. We need to make sure that our seniors live in dignity.

We also want to strengthen the Canada Pension Plan so that Canadians can count on their guaranteed public pension when they need it. Let’s not ask Canadians to stake their future on private plans that have recently failed us.

In addition, we have put forward a concrete way to reduce skyrocketing heating costs by removing the federal sales tax from home heating bills. Parents should not have to choose between paying rent, buying groceries, or paying heating bills. We should also bring back the EcoENERGY home retrofit program so we can make our homes more efficient, thus cutting our bills even further. This will help us reduce greenhouse gas emissions, while creating local jobs.

Finally, it has become obvious that we need national leadership on health care. Immediate action is needed to ensure that five million Canadians no longer have to go without a family doctor. New Democrats have been calling on the Harper government to invest in public health care and in the training and hiring of 1,200 new doctors and 6,000 new nurses. This would lessen the load in hospitals and save millions of dollars in the long run. Our public health-care system defines us as Canadians. It is worth defending, but it also needs to be modernized.

It’s time to put the political games aside and focus on immediate action to help families make ends meet. If the prime minister is serious about getting things done and giving Canadian families a break, there are concrete solutions that New Democrats have put on the table. However, if Harper chooses to put his own political goals ahead of the needs of Canadians, then he needs to gear up to face an election.

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