Paul Martin has indicated that he will put through another round of tax cuts when he takes over as PM. He also insists that debt reduction must be an absolute priority for the forseeable future. Aside from the obvious contradiction in those two goals, there's something else he should keep in mind. According to a poll just released by the CRIC, Canadians have different priorities.
When asked in a general manner what do with any potential federal surplus, 40 per cent argued for increased social spending, 37 per cent for debt reduction and 22 per cent for tax cuts.So how about it? Do we get what we want, or what you think is good for us? And if the latter, who are you listening to and whose interests are you looking out for?But when asked a slightly different question, which specified that increased spending would be dedicated to health care and education, the number in favour of debt reduction and tax cuts dropped to 24 per cent and 12 per cent, respectively. Fully 63 per cent said the extra money should go to social spending.
Researchers with CRIC found that health, education and federal-provincial cooperation were the top three priorities in every province and territory and topped the list for residents of country's five largest cities.
And if you're wondering what else in on the minds of Canadians, check this out.
The survey results also call on the next prime minister also to address an apparently popular desire for greater federal-provincial co-operation and more transparent and effective democracy.Electoral reform is an issue whose time has come. This is going to be interesting.Less than half of respondents (42 per cent) said that they believe the two levels of government are working well together, and greater number (48 per cent) say that reforming political institutions to make them more open and democratic is a high priority.
