NOTES FOR AN ADDRESS BY PRIME MINISTER JEAN CHRÉTIEN On the Occasion of the Confederation Dinner

November 26, 2002
Toronto, Ontario

We are now in the tenth year of our government. And I have another fourteen months to go.

I want to talk tonight about some of the big issues on our Liberal agenda. Issues like the economy. Innovation. Kids. Cities. Ratifying Kyoto and protecting the environment. Renewing Medicare. For our children. And future generations.

When I first came to the Toronto Confederation Dinner as Prime Minister, Canada was in a different place. More fragile. Less united. Less self confident.

Just think back nine years. A country in economic crisis. A deficit of 42 billion dollars. High unemployment. A lengthy period of high interest rates. The unity of the country in turmoil after Meech Lake and Charlottetown. The Bloc Québécois as the official opposition in Ottawa.

Well, what a difference nine years make.

The Canadian economy in 2002 is creating jobs faster than it has for decades. Almost 450,000 new jobs in Canada in the first nine months of this year. When the United States lost 43,000 jobs. Interest rates, mortgage rates are very low. Personal disposable income has been rising for five years in a row.

Canada is now, in the words of John Manley, a "northern tiger".

Last month, Statistics Canada reported a significant decrease in the number of low-income families in Canada.

The number of children living in low income families has dropped by 25 percent from 16.7% in 1996 to 12.5% in 2000. No, not enough. We still have to do better. But real progress.

The unity of the country is stronger than ever. We have become a very strong, very confident country.

I have always said that a strong economy is the essence of a strong society.

We have worked very hard as a government since the first day we took office. Who would have said, at that time, that today we would be outperforming the United States.

This is no accident. It is due to the hard work of Canadians and to the economic policies of the government.

During the recent global slowdown, our economy experienced only a brief contraction. But the American economy shrank in each of the first three quarters of 2001. Between the second quarter of 2000 and the second quarter of this year, our standard of living, as measured by GDP per capita, rose 3.3% compared to a drop of .5% in the United States. Our budget remains in balance. The United States budget is in deficit. Our current account is in surplus. The American current account is in deficit.

Impressive statistics. Hard won gains. Made possible by the support and sacrifice of our citizens. And by our insistence on rock solid fiscal discipline.

Some of the Opposition and many of the right wing commentators wrongly claim that we are simply big spenders. That I am a big spender.

Our government has turned 30 years of continuous deficits into five balanced budgets in a row. And we are on track for number 6 this year - the largest uninterrupted string of balanced budgets in our history.

We are such big spenders that, not so long ago, 35¢ of every dollar went to service the debt. Today it is about 20¢ and dropping.

We are such big spenders that we have paid down about $45 billion of debt. And we will continue to pay down debt. Our debt load has fallen from 72% of GDP to under 50%. And it is continuing to fall. We are such tax and spend Liberals that we have reduced personal and corporate income tax and employment insurance premiums by $20 billion a year.

It is a record we are proud of. That I am proud of. And it is not a record I intend to put in jeopardy.

But our Liberal agenda recognizes that this healthy balance sheet will only remain healthy if we continue to invest in our society: in learning, in health, in children and in the environment.

September 11^th. Enron. WorldCom. These shocking events have reminded people of the value of government.

For my part, I have always believed that government is a force for good in society. I have always rejected the right wing belief that government is always the problem.

And just look at what we have done: the National Child Benefit; a secure Canada Pension Plan; Aboriginal Head Start; SchoolNet; the Millennium Scholarships; iInvestments in universities; new money for health care; investments in early childhood development; a new Agricultural Policy framework; the Clarity Act.

But the true test of enduring public confidence is not the difference we have made, but the difference we will still make – that we must make.

Because, my friends, we have a lot more work to do. There are still too many children not getting a good start in life. We have a responsibility to do much better.

Bill Graham’s riding of Rosedale has some pretty big homes in it. Some of you here tonight may live in them. But his riding also includes Regent Park, where no one here tonight lives. But where there are too many poor families and poor kids. Who need a good start in life. And who look to government for help.

Investment in people is both good economic policy and good social policy. Our future depends on providing the best possible opportunities for our children. As a society, we must strive to ensure that every Canadian child, no matter where they live, has the best possible start in life and the chance to achieve their full potential. So they can contribute fully to Canadian society.

This is why we have committed in the last Throne Speech to further increase the National Child Benefit for low-income familites, building on our reinvestments in recent years.

The day after tomorrow, Roy Romanow will release the report on the Royal Commission on the Future of Health Care. A very important milestone on the way to reform and long term sustainability of public medicare in Canada. Mr. Romanow’s report as well as the Senate Committee Report, and various provincial reports, will help governments develop a national approach for addressing Canada’s health care needs.

Our government will do its part. We will devote our energies to work with the provinces over the next few weeks to develop a federal-provincial approach. Every Premier - no matter whether we disagree on other issues - has assured me of full co-operation in achieving a plan for health care reform. And they can be assured in return of my full co-operation.

Everyone knows that money alone will not solve our health care problems. But if the plan is there, if significant long term change is agreed on, I assure Canadians the necessary federal dollars will be there as well.

Canadians expect a successful First Ministers Meeting in late January or early February on a comprehensive plan. It will happen. Canadians won’t allow their leaders to do anything less.

And the federal share of the money to finance that plan will be there in Mr. Manley’s budget in late February.

Our Throne Speech, two months ago, put an emphasis on health, children, infrastructure, and innovation.

Cities like Toronto play an important role in our nation’s economic development. That is why the federal government is also acting on an urban strategy.

Allan Rock and Jane Stewart co-chaired last week’s successful National Summit on Innovation and Learning in Toronto. We will be following through with action to build a Learning Society, a Knowledge Society.

We are well on the way towards a budget which will deliver on these priorities in a way that provides long term accountability, sustainability and continued balanced budgets.

But the Throne Speech set out other priorities. We have introduced an ethics package in Parliament.

And next week, we will be introducing a bill to radically reform the financing of political parties.

Let me turn now to an issue of extraordinary importance to the future. Yesterday, the House of Commons began debating the ratification of the Kyoto Protocol.

In the interests of future generations, it falls to this generation of Canadians to confront the issue. And it is a challenge that Canadians are prepared to take.

I know that how we approach our Kyoto commitments must take into account the effect on the economy.

My government has worked too hard on improving our economy to put it at risk. And we will not.

We have ten years to meet our obligations under the treaty. We can make progress together. We will ratify Kyoto and implement our obligations with a made-in-Canada plan.

We are working very hard to put in place a plan that will reduce uncertainty for business and for investors. A plan that will meet our environmental responsibilities while taking into account the most affected industries.

There are many good ideas: from industry, and from provincial governments. That will take us a long way. Technology will take us further.

The plan may not answer every single question. No plan can do that. It will be adjusted where necessary as we learn and work together.

Working together, seizing opportunities, putting aside the rhetoric. I am confident that Canadians can rise to the challenge.

We will meet our targets – responsibly – in the best interests of the economy, the environment and future generations.

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