Harp Harp Harper away.........

So Stephen has succumbed to Quebec. That's not unexpected but it is unusual so early in a mandate. His shallow political moves are even changing the "policy geek", image.

So much for accountability and so much for his ideology. The only balancing act this harp seal is going to perform will see the interests of Alberta on one side and Quebec on the other. I doubt even Sir Paul can come to his rescue.

What were the promises?

1. Putting more money back in the hands of ordinary Canadians through Federal Tax Reductions.

2. Removing non-renewable resources from the equalization formula.

A quote from the front page of the Government of Canada's website.

"In his remarks, the Prime Minister underlined that the Government is restoring fiscal balance by increasing transfers to the provinces and cutting federal taxes, which creates tax room for other governments."

That money he promised to put back in the hands of ordinary Canadians he suggests should be grabbed by the Provinces, thereby removing responsibilities of the Federal Government for such investments as infrastructure money for municipalities. The only province which continually requests less Federal Taxation to vacate tax space for the Province's is Quebec.

CUTE ACCOUNTING BUT DECEPTIVE PROMISES STEPHEN

On the equalization promise of removing non-renewable resource revenues from equalization. TSK TSK Stephen, you didn't ask Charest first. The BLOC must be smarting today, they were relying on that to have a referendum on. Not that I have to remind anybody but Quebec has major hydro-electric revenues, theirs and ours and they would not have received as much benefit from this reasonable amendment to the formula.
You see Stephen had a rational point when he suggested that non-renewables are finite and therefore need to have a more immediate value, whereas renewables have much longer to generate revenue for an economy.

Alas, the political Stephen, the reworked version of the Corporate puppet masters, want Stephen to win a majority.

You think all this is cynical and it is, wait until you hear the direct connection to the Upper Churchill.

Yes people there is another kick in the teeth here for Newfoundland and Labrador. The equalization formula considers a province's ability to generate revenue from natural resources, among other things, including hydro-electric power (water power rentals). Whether the province makes a bad deal or not, the Federal Government considers the potential revenues as actual revenues and factors that into the equation. The more you can make from a resource the less you will receive in equalization. Up until 1982 all the potential revenue from the Upper Churchill was attributed as a revenue source of Newfoundland and Labrador. Conversely all the money being made by Quebec on the Upper Churchill was not considered for that province.

In 1982 the Federal Government finally acknowledged the gross imbalance of this and shifted some of the potential revenues for water power rentals to Quebec. (...they already had received years of this additional windfall through equalization payments).

Just imagine we were not only robbed by the actual money for hydro-electric power sales but also lost equalization as if we had received the revenues.

With the proposed changes now, which would see only 50% of this revenue considered, Quebec's decreased equalization from proper inclusion of hydro-electric revenue from the Upper Churchill will now be returned to that province in increased equalization payments from the feds....

Well done Charest, shame on you Harper, and whatever to Loyola who still struggles to get a commitment for a cost-shared early retirement program for fishers who are displaced by the feds mismanagement of our resource.

Take a bow Loyola, for surely we have reached a new low.