Wednesday April 28, 2010

The federal government has been roundly criticized for its expensive promotion of its own Economic Action Plan. It seems, however, that the government's lavish spending on advertising and promotion has gotten uproariously out of hand - unless subsidizing the advertising industry is an unstated goal of the plan. Reasonable estimates place government spending on advertising at close to $42-million. Ouch!

Tuesday April 27, 2010

Ontario's Liberal Party has been widely criticized over the past year about the lack of oversight in healthcare spending. It seems, however, that effective mechanisms have not been implemented to control this problem. Indeed, the salaries of hospital CEO's have continued to rise dramatically while front-line patient care suffers. Newmarket's Southlake Hospital paid its cheif executive $2.9-million last year, with an unexplained $300,000 bonus. This amounts to an 80% pay increase in less than 5 years. Ouch!

Friday April 16, 2010

Quebec's provincial Liberal party has been caught peedling influence through the appointment of public servants. The appointment of judges, in particular, has caught the attention of ethics watchdogs as well as opposition parties. Unfortunately, when the Liberals engage in these shenanigans support for the sepratist Parti Quebecois increases and Canada loses out in both ways. Ouch!

Tuesday, April 13 2010

Ed Stelmach's government has now been accused of hiding the actual size of Alberta's deficit. Like former Alberta Premier Don Getty, it seems Ed Stelmach has been hiding or disguising some of Alberta's financial obligations. According to Wildrose Alliance MLA's, this year's deficit is more in the neighbourhood of $6.5 - $8 billion, when reported honestly. Infrastructure and healthcare obligations had not been previously included in Stelmach's projections, which can now be seen as an attempt to make Alberta's economy appear healthier than is actually the case. Ouch!

Thursday April 8, 2010

The most recent audit of MP expenses and government departments took place in 1991, yet it is unlikely that we will see another proper audit any time soon. Why? Because MP's must 'invite' the Auditor General to review their accounts and expenses, despite what taxpayers across the country are demanding. Ouch!

Tuesday April 6, 2010

The upcoming G20 and G8 conferences to be held in Canada will cost taxpayers $180 million for planning and security. Many citizens feel this is an unjustifiable expense as the city of Huntsville, Ontario seems to be ill-suited to host such an event, and has required massive infrastructure investments to prepare for the conference. Furthermore, in the aftermath of a global recession this use of funds has drawn increased scrutiny as many facilties already exist that could readily host such gatherings, such as the United Nations building or even an existing conference centre in Toronto. Ouch!