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Alternative Federal Budget 2005: It’s Time

Alternative Budget by Canadian Centre for Policy Alternatives

Every year since 1995, the Canadian Centre for Policy Alternatives (CCPA) has released an Alternative Federal Budget. According to the CCPA, budgets are not merely financial documents: they are the clearest statement of a government’s actual priorities, stripped of the rhetoric of election promises and Throne Speeches. The Alternative Federal Budget begins with the premise that budgets should first be about the people; a budget is an exercise in popular economic education and a process for Canadians to develop consensus on what the federal budget would look like if public interests were truly being served.

To create an Alternative Federal Budget, the CCPA calls on representatives from a broad cross-section of civil society organizations, including: labour; the environment; anti-poverty; women; child advocates; farming; student; and, Aboriginal Peoples. In crafting the Alternative Federal Budget, the participants address the government’s spending plan across all areas of federal jurisdiction, assess the effectiveness of the current budget, and offer alternatives.

In the 2005 Alternative Federal Budget, the CCPA argues that spending on social programs has been sacrificed in favour of debt repayment. It asserts the federal Liberals have continually produced low estimates of budget surpluses in order to squelch debate about what to do with those surpluses. However, the CCPA contends, the 2005 Liberal minority government is now using budget surpluses to garner votes. This Alternative Budget is an ongoing debate about how to best balance tax cuts, program spending, and debt servicing.

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Policy Publication Details

Author(s):	Canadian Centre for Policy Alternatives;
Publisher:	Canadian Centre for Policy Alternatives [ Visit Website ]
Year Published:	2005;	Publisher Type:	Research Institute
Publicly Available:	Yes	Research Focus:	National;
Registration Required:	No	Language:	English French
Payment Required:	No	Publication Format:	Adobe PDF

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Subjects / Categories:

Policy Articles / Fiscal & Budgetary / Federal & Provincial Budget
Policy Articles / Fiscal & Budgetary / Federal & Provincial Budget / 2005
Policy Articles / Fiscal & Budgetary

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Keywords / Tags:

alternative federal budget 2005; budget surpluses; program spending; tax cuts; debt servicing; spending priorities;