Canada is a great country to which history bears witness. What we are not, is a country with a large population regardless of the vast amount of land. Of the G-7 countries, Canada has the smallest population even accounting for the large-scale immigration of the Trudeau years. Of particular significance is that of the G-7 countries, Canada has the second largest percentage of public sector workers at 21.5% according to the International Labour Organization.One of the major sources for governmental income is the tax system. According to the Fraser Institute total government spending as measured by share of the economy in 2022, noticeably exceeded the optimal level in all provinces except Alberta. The highest was Nova Scotia but New Brunswick, Prince Edward Island, also were more than twice the average optimal level. Not only does this create a negative environment for investment but it also impacts social benefits. The high level of public sector employment and the costs of simply maintaining promised services are straining the limited pool of money the government’s tax system generates.If we add to this the poorly managed immigration of the last few years, it is obvious why our health-care system is overwhelmed. The situation is further complicated by the fact that many of the newcomers to Canada are simply not equipped to be net contributors to this country's advanced economy. In general therefore, we can expect the Trudeau government’s immigrants will require greater governmental resources than previous immigrants, who arrived in Canada when immigration policies under both Tories and Liberals were carefully chosen for what newcomers could contribute to Canada's economic growth.Meanwhile, through multiple governments, Canadians have been groomed to expect more and more programs. Paying for the new programs limits the money available for the older programs. Healthcare is an excellent example. For several decades we have all known that our health-care system was broken across the entire nation. Everyone who was not immediately in danger of dropping dead waited in line for needed procedures. Under the current government, now we are waiting in line to see the “expert” so we can wait in line for a procedure. The system is broken because the government does not allocate sufficient resources to health-care. The unspoken reason is that voters assume that health-care will be there and therefore more money for health-care will not translate into more votes, but new give aways will.It is long overdue for Canadians to have an adult conversation. We are going to have to decide which government programs can be appropriately funded and which need to be cut. This is no different than making a household budget. Most of us must decide throughout the year where we can spend our money and where we need to cut back. We are already beyond our ability to sustain the services offered. We have stolen from the future and with the latest budget we will steal from the elderly. There is no one left to steal from to buy votes. Time for a sit-down.Dr. A.W. Barber is the former Director of Asian Studies at the University of Calgary. He is internationally active and has wide-ranging interests.
