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A decade of taxpayer abuse … from politicians
and bureaucrats alike
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Ottawa - Tuesday, October 20, 2003 - by: Walter Robinson,
Federal Director, Canadian
Taxpayers Federation |
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spring
election
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While the leaves are still changing colours and the snowblower
is still in the garage … pundits, activists and voters alike are already casting
their eyes past the harsh winter to the promise of Spring 2004 and an all but certain
federal election call. |
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vote
conservative
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Paul Martin will seek a mandate to implement his
“change” agenda. Jack Layton and his NDP will trot out their big government,
high tax agenda. And it appears that small-c conservative voters will have a viable
electoral vehicle through which to make their views known. |
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record
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From the perspective of the Canadian Taxpayers Federation,
the record of abuse — political and bureaucratic — perpetuated on taxpayers over
the past decade should not be overlooked as this record also leads one to propose
constructive policy driven solutions. |
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waste
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On the political side, the pillaging of taxpayers includes: |
- $500 million in cancellation penalties for military helicopters that the government
will now buy anyway;
- $500 million in cancellation penalties for Pearson airport in Toronto which has
now been privatized and modernized anyway;
- Over $7 billion stashed away in arms-length foundations outside the reach or
view of parliamentary scrutiny;
- $1 billion for cost overruns in the politically motivated gun registry (slated
to reach $2 billion by 2012); and probably the most egregious of all
- The documented plan, revealed through Access to Information, of
Technology Partnerships Canada (TPC) — the Liberal government’s flagship corporate
welfare program — to hand out $6 billion through to 2020 and at best, recoup $2 billion
in loan and royalty repayments: A plan to squander a net $200 million per year for
20 years running to fatten the bottom lines of some of Canada’s most successful companies.
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broke
every
rule
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- On the bureaucratic side, the disregard and disrespect
for the hard earned tax dollars of Canadians is equally appalling. Successive auditors
general have found:
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- In 1998, that one-third of Canadian Heritage multiculturalism grants was approved
with little or no examination of outcomes or attention to duplicate programs in other
departments.
- In 1998, the finding of four million more Social Insurance Numbers in circulation
than adults over the age of 20 and the follow-up in 2002 that the bureaucracy’s attempt
to “fix” the problem resulted in five million more SIN numbers in circulation resulting
in a massive potential for welfare and entitlement benefit fraud; and
- Public servants breaking almost “every rule in the book” in the administration
annual $40 million politically motivated federal sponsorship program.
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billions
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These are just a few of the hundreds of findings — tallying
billions of dollars — in over a decade of reports published by the Auditor General.
The last (or is that lost?) decade is clearly one of waste and missed opportunities
to further reduce taxes and pay down our national debt. And let’s not even get started
on the expense account abuses perpetuated by the likes of Mssrs. Weatherill,
Boyer and Radwanski. |
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corporate
welfare
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In the next federal election the party that promises
to end corporate welfare, get serious about our national debt, offers real tax relief,
innovatively addresses the aboriginal file, and pledges to implement comprehensive
whistleblowing legislation has a real shot a governing. |
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These are just some of the key issues the Canadian
Taxpayers Federation will raise in the leadup to and during the next federal
election campaign. |
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Walter Robinson
Federal Director
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Return to Ensign
- Return to Saskatchewan
News
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This page is a story posted on Ensign and/or Saskatchewan
News, both of which are daily web sites offering a variety of material from scenic
images, political commentary, information and news. These publications are the work
of Faster Than Light Communications . If you would like to comment on this story or you wish to contact
the editor of these sites please send us email. |
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Editor : Timothy W. Shire
Faster Than Light Communication
Box 1776, Tisdale, Saskatchewan, Canada, S0E 1T0
306 873 2004
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