Province	Législature	Session	Type de discours	Date du discours	Locuteur	Fonction du locuteur	Parti politique
Alberta	27e 	3e 	Discours du budget	9 février 2010	M. Ted Morton	Ministre des Finances et des Entreprises	PC


Dr. Morton: Mr. Speaker, it is my privilege today to present the government of Alberta's proposed budget for the fiscal year 201011. I do so with confidence but also with caution, caution because our province and, indeed, our country and the world are all still feeling the impact of the worst economic recession since the 1930s– these are difficult times, and difficult times call for difficult choices – but also with confidence because these choices are made easier and the path to a brighter future made more certain by knowing that this Assembly and this government can draw upon the many strengths that are Alberta's heritage.

Alberta's heritage is one of strong families and strong communities, of independence and self-reliance but also a spirit of caring for our neighbours. We value our past and provide for the future. We respect and support those generations that built Alberta, and we are proud to act as stewards of our natural and economic resources, responsible for passing on to the next generation an Alberta that is as good as or better than the one we received. Budget 2010 is faithful to Alberta's heritage. It protects services for the young and the elderly, the sick and the disabled, and it protects our air, land, water, and wildlife. It keeps us on the path to prosperity, both present and future.

Another part of Alberta's heritage is the effect of the ups and downs of commodity markets on our resource-based economy. Too often governments have responded by spending too much in the good times and cutting too much in the bad times, but thanks to past fiscal prudence and accumulated savings, today we do not have to make deep cuts to essential services. Over the past 16 years Alberta has paid down $23 billion in debt. We have saved nearly $25 billion, primarily in the heritage and sustainability funds. Mr. Speaker, Budget 2010 puts a stop to the wild ups and downs of this fiscal pendulum.

I'm pleased to report early signs of economic recovery: higher oil prices, growth in the housing market, and 12,500 new jobs in Alberta since October. In the past three months five new oil sands projects have been announced, adding over $5 billion in investments. Just last month a $4 billion bitumen upgrader was announced for Alberta's Industrial Heartland. That kind of investment is expected to spur Alberta's economy to grow by 2.6 per cent in 2010 and by an average of 3 per cent over the next three years.

That's the good news, that we and the rest of the world are transitioning out of this recession. But how long and how steep this transition will be and whether there will still be some dips ahead no one knows for sure. As an exporting economy what happens in the rest of the world affects Alberta, and there will be many risks still out there and beyond our control. The high Canadian dollar and fluctuating financial markets and energy prices create volatility in government revenues. Natural gas prices remain low. Canadian and U.S. stimulus funding will end this year with unknown impact. Our largest trading partner is $12 trillion in debt. The outlook for commercial real estate is very uncertain. So while we have cause for optimism, the strength and the pace of Alberta's economic recovery cannot be taken for granted. Fiscal prudence is still required.

It is within this context that I present Budget 2010. It is a budget that enhances Alberta's competitiveness in the global market. A competitive Alberta creates jobs and opportunity, it reduces demand on social programs, and it generates the revenue to support the public services and social supports that Albertans value. The Fraser Institute recently ranked Alberta as the number one province in Canada in which to invest. Budget 2010 keeps it that way by implementing our Premier's pledge that there will be no new taxes.

As I deliver this budget, I do so knowing that it will not satisfy everyone. Some will say we spend too much. Others will say we spend too little. Mr. Speaker, it's not about spending too much or spending too little; it's about spending the right amounts in the right places. This is what Budget 2010 does. It strikes the right balance. It protects priority programs without draining our savings, without going into debt for ongoing operations, and without raising taxes, and it puts us back into the black by Budget 2012. We will not meet today's needs on the backs of tomorrow's citizens. We will not saddle future generations with high taxes and debt.

Budget 2010 includes a total operating expense of $33.2 billion. Excluding a one-time payment to Alberta Health Services, that is a 4.3 per cent increase over the 2009-2010 forecast. That 4.3 per cent is somewhat higher than the expected population growth and inflation of 3.5 per cent for this year. However, total increases over the full three years of this budget will actually be less than population growth and inflation over that same period. Based on projected revenues of $34 billion and a total expense of $38.7 billion, we are forecasting a deficit of $4.7 billion. A smaller deficit of $1.1 billion is forecast for 2011-12, and we get back into the black in year 3, with a projected surplus of $505 million in 2012-13. Savings from the sustainability fund will offset the two years of deficit.

A year ago government announced plans to make $2 billion in adjustments in Budget 2010 unless our financial situation improved. A great deal of work was done to achieve this, and I commend the decision-makers across government ministries who helped us to achieve $1.3 billion in savings through program changes and efficiencies. In light of a brighter than expected fiscal and economic picture, we have chosen to reinvest these savings into priority areas and still be back in the black in three years. This does not mean our job is done. As we did last year, we will continue to identify and make in-year savings, with a target this year of finding an additional $240 million.

There has been much speculation, and some of it, frankly, fearmongering, about potential budget reductions. Budget 2010 does reduce funding in a number of areas. These reductions start in government areas that do not directly affect services to the public: a reduction for Executive Council of 8.6 per cent, for Service Alberta of 15.6 per cent, and for International and Intergovernmental Relations of 7.7 per cent. About 700 government positions are being eliminated, but we have worked hard to minimize job losses, with an effort to reassign many affected employees to vacant positions. We will continue to work with our public-sector unions to live within our budgets while minimizing job losses.

Some reductions are made to programs that deliver front-line public services. As more Albertans go back to work, the demand for income supports is expected to diminish, resulting in a reduction to income supports of $41 million. Greater emphasis on early intervention and more permanent and enhanced foster placements will reduce child intervention services by $27 million. We will save $19 million by focusing our community grants to those groups that provide services and supports to the most vulnerable. We will reduce the costs for the rent supplement program by $13 million by targeting rental assistance to those with the greatest needs.

Reductions, however, are not being made across the board. Budget 2010 protects programs that help the most vulnerable. Benefits are protected at current levels for recipients of AISH and
Alberta seniors' benefits, and funding levels are maintained for the persons with developmental disabilities program. Benefits are also maintained for seniors' supports for dental, optical, and school property tax assistance. More than $40 million is added to some of these programs to accommodate growth in caseloads. Funding levels are also maintained for programs such as Alberta aids to daily living, affordable housing programs, and homelessness initiatives. Mr. Speaker, this budget and this government will help those who need help.

Budget 2010 highlights Alberta's continuing commitment to publicly funded health care. It eliminates the Alberta Health Services debt with a one-time injection of $759 million on top of a $343 million payment made in 2009-10, and it increases Alberta Health Services' annual budget by $1.3 billion, adjusting the base by more than $800 million and adding 6 per cent more to address cost pressures associated with an aging population, expensive drugs, and technologies. The 6 per cent increase is part of a five-year plan of predictable increases to support long-term planning in health care delivery, and the subsequent four years will see increases of 6 per cent in each of the next two years and 4.5 per cent in each of the following two years. Our commitment to public health care now totals more than $15 billion, and with this five-year plan for health care funding health officials commit to identifying new efficiencies in service delivery to ensure that the health care system operates within its means.

Our government is also committed to ensuring that Albertans are treated the same as all other Canadians. Today the province of Alberta receives from Ottawa at least $200 less per person than other provinces under the Canada Health transfer. This amounts to a shortfall of more than $700 million a year. This is not right. This is not fair. We will vigorously pursue fair funding on behalf of all Albertans.

Alberta's most important renewable resource is our children, and the biggest investors in Alberta's future are their parents. So to protect our children, our homes, and our communities, Budget 2010 provides $148 million to continue our safe communities program. This $148 million will enhance addiction prevention programs and services for families of at-risk children, it will complete the Alberta gang strategy and the long-term crime reduction strategy, and it will hire another 100 front-line police officers. Mr. Speaker, we're going to make sure that 2010 is not a good year for gangs, drug dealers, and thieves.

These social programs are not cheap. To pay for them, Budget 2010 contains initiatives that generate jobs, opportunities, and revenues. Value-added initiatives such as the bitumen royalty in kind will help us get the most out of Alberta's conventional energy and oil sands. Budget 2010 allocates $237 million to innovation, research, and technology commercialization that will bring that research to market. This includes $188 million for programs under Alberta Innovates to develop Alberta-grown technology and environmental, medical, and manufacturing solutions into marketable products and services.

A strong reputation as a good environmental steward is increasingly important to protect access to our export markets. Budget 2010 continues Alberta's commitment to carbon capture and storage with the potential for the technology to increase oil recovery from existing wells. But our environmental stewardship goes well beyond greenhouse gases. Budget 2010 supports renewable energy, environmental management and compliance, and the renewed water for life strategy. For environmentally friendly municipal transit $470 million over three years is committed to the Green TRIP, and work will continue on developing regional plans under Alberta's land-use framework.

Other natural resources such as forestry and agriculture contribute to Alberta's economic strength, and Budget 2010 allocates $10 million to address workforce retention and retraining and to enhance forest health initiatives. In agriculture Budget 2010 provides over $9 million to AgriFlex, a new cost-shared program with the federal government to improve agriculture's competitiveness. Plus, $40 million is added to the cost-shared Growing Forward initiative to support agricultural innovation and risk management.

The future of Alberta is sitting in classrooms and lecture halls across the province right now, and Budget 2010 recognizes that a solid education is both a personal advantage for students and a competitive advantage for Alberta. School boards will receive an increase of $250 million, or 4.8 per cent, for announced grant rate increases, enrolment growth, and specialized services. Support for adult learning is increased by $31 million, with a focus on training for work programs. Overall, base operating grants for postsecondary institutions are maintained at 2009 levels, which is over $2 billion.

This budget fulfills our commitment to invest in the future through expanded, improved infrastructure. The capital plan supports $7.2 billion in infrastructure in 2010-11 and more than $20 billion over the next three years. This infrastructure spending will create thousands of new jobs in construction at a time when unemployment is high and costs are low. Lower building costs mean we get more bang for our buck, and the new jobs will support financial stability for many hardworking Alberta families.

Budget 2010 recognizes that Alberta's economic future is increasingly in the north. Accordingly, we will build new resource roads in northern Alberta and continue the twinning of portions of highway 63. In Fort McMurray we will complete two highway interchanges and a new five-lane bridge over the Athabasca River. 

Across the province work will start on 41 schools that were already approved under the capital plan. Funding is also allocated for water and waste water, affordable housing, and supportive living. The proceeds from Alberta capital bonds will provide $100 million to build seniors' accommodations, including long-term care facilities. This year work continues on the Edmonton and Calgary ring roads and on improving highways across the province.

Fully one-quarter of our three-year capital plan is invested directly in municipalities. Municipalities receive infrastructure grants and support totalling $1.78 billion in 2010-11 and $5.25 billion over three years. This includes the municipal sustainability initiative, which receives a $476 million increase, providing municipalities with a total of $876 million to address their infrastructure needs.

In summary, Budget 2010 strikes the right balance, and we achieved this balance because we stayed true to the Premier's four-point recovery plan. We have reduced spending in most departments, with over $1.3 billion in cuts from forecast targets. Second, we have used our savings, the sustainability fund, to protect priority programs: education for the young, health care for the sick, and strengthened supports for the elderly and the disabled. Third, we continue to build infrastructure, creating more jobs today and a foundation for future economic growth. Finally, we've kept Alberta competitive with no new taxes and a balanced budget by 2012. This budget will restore economic growth in Alberta. And let's be perfectly clear about this: in today's economy what's good for Alberta is good for all of Canada.

Some critics will point out that this budget has a large deficit. It does, and neither I nor anybody else on this side of the House is happy about that, but running a deficit in 2010 doesn't make us any different than most other provinces or the federal government. What does make us different is that we are not creating new debt for the day-to-day operations. Our projected debt supports capital spending, infrastructure that will be there for future generations. What does make us different is that our budget shortfalls this year and next can and will be covered by our rainy-day savings account. What other government in Canada can say that?

We will not allow annual deficits to aggregate into a large debt to burden future generations. Albertans want to pay for services, not to service interest on debt. We made that mistake in the 1980s, and we will not make that mistake again.

Mr. Speaker, this budget supports the Premier's vision of a fiscally strong Alberta with a competitive and innovative economy and the best publicly funded health care in Canada and the most advanced infrastructure.

Will budget cutbacks present challenges for some Albertans? Of course. But it is a fair budget. No one group is singled out. Every sector, every Albertan will be asked to give up a little. That's the key to our recovery: the recognition that we're all in this together. So working together, we can weather the economic storm until sunnier times return, which they will, and we will keep Alberta a beautiful and healthy Alberta, the best place to live, work, and raise a family.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker.