Do you believe everything the conservative government tells you via newspapers and television, about our supposed economic recovery? Are we really in recovery mode? Have a look at these facts. Only the public sector is hiring and the provincial governments will soon reach their budget limits. The private sector is still cutting jobs. Unemployment is grossly under-reported: only those actively looking for jobs are counted. The people who have given up the search are not. Those who had full time employment and now have only part time jobs are not. The people who had good full time jobs with benefits and now are working full time for minimum wage and no benefits, are not counted either.
Wage growth has slowed to its lowest in years and, adjusted for inflation, is negative.
The stock market is not the economy, it doesn’t create jobs, increase wages, or contribute to the GNP. Stocks and bonds rise and fall due to the investment strategies of large fund managers. A rise in stock market indexes therefore is not an indication of recovery.
The Green Party gives Canadians the opportunity to move from an economy based on the unsustainable exploitation of our resources to a sustainable and resilient model based on conservation and renewable resources. The Green party believes in responsible budgeting, forward looking investing,and a concern for those among us who are least fortunate. These are the guiding principles of our economic plan. We support income splitting for families, lower payroll and income taxes, turning blue collar jobs into green collar jobs, higher taxes on polluting industries and no more grey-industry bail outs.