The government announced today after holding a roundtable discussion in Charlottetown, that further pre-budget consultations with business, academic and sectoral leaders will take place in the New Year at venues across the country, details of which are still forthcoming.
As well the government is encouraging Canadians who can not attend a future event in person to to participate in the process by submitting their views through an online form. There are four questions and a comments section available with a limit of 200 words per question response. In other words be concise.
“Budget 2012 will maintain our focus on jobs and economic growth while reducing the deficit and returning to balance in the medium term,” said Minister Flaherty. “Today and in coming weeks, I want to hear from Canadians on how we can advance the next phase of our Economic Action Plan to continue to deliver results on these priorities.”
The government is providing an opportunity, at least on record, for further input on the budget. It’s an opportunity that the space sector should consider taking advantage of.
The announcement today suggests that the government is waiting until the last possible moment to make decisions on the budget. The volatility of the global economy is certainly the prime motivator and with the ongoing European financial crisis possibly getting worse including talk of a possible Euro collapse, the government wants more time to assess what to do.