February 2012

Fiscal Monitor for December 2011 Indicates Federal Deficit Outcome for 2011-12 to be at Least $3 Billion Lower than Forecast in November 2011 Update due to Lower-Than-Expected Program Expenses

The December 2011 Fiscal Monitor, released on February 24, 2012 reports a deficit for the federal government of $17.7 billion for the first nine months (April to December) of fiscal year 2011-12, down $9.7 billion from the deficit of $27.4 billion reported in the same period in 2010-11.

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“UNBELIEVABLE, UNRELIABLE, AND INCREDIBLE”

These are the words used by the Minister of Finance in a short scrum with reporters to describe Kevin Page, the Parliamentary Budget Officer (PBO). 

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What Do Harper and Flaherty Mean By “Sustainable”?

In his  “Speech to the World” in Davos on January 26, 2012, Prime Minister Harper proclaimed that steps would be taken to ensure the “sustainability of our social programs and fiscal position over the next generation”. What does this mean?

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