Provincial Budget - 2015
 

I figure just as well start a new thread seeing the budget will come down on April 30.

We're already seeing some outcomes already: 77.5 teaching position and 1400+ public sector attrition cuts.

It'll be interesting to see what happens on Thursday.

Personally, I quite liked today's announcement. Government will allow the private sector to build and operate four long-term care homes on the island and the government will provide public funding for the beds in those homes. Of course the unions are upset.

http://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/newfou...plan-1.3051622

As well tomorrow morning the government will be announcing the long awaited fiscal framework with municipalities.

I'm anxious to see how this breaks down after it all comes out. I expect this is going to be on par with 2013 in terms of reaction - unless the PC's are throwing all the bad out there now so that we are pleasantly surprised on Thursday. Being an election year, they are basically left balancing responsible cost-cutting and ticking people off.

I'm also going to assume that S'ville's new courthouse is off the table again. It's been a full year since government announced plans to start work on it and 7 or 8 months since the architect's were hired, and I don't even think a site selection was done. So that's 12 years of PC government and 12 years of waiting for a courthouse that was first announced in 2002.

I agree...something needs to be done. The health care costs in this province are about $3 billion a year. Doing some basic math that works out to a cost of about $470/month per Newfoundlander to put it in perspective. Seems unsustainable especially with our aging population.

I'm not sure what to think. Attrition is definitely preferable to layoffs - but the public service has already declined so much since 2013.

Privatizing long-term care is fine with me. The Feds are content to let it go, so we can't hold out against creeping privatization alone.

The cut to teaching positions is really just a rearrangement with the addition of more teachers. I'm not sure why they marketed it as they did - probably to preempt any opposition response.

BTW - 15 minutes until the highlights of the new municipal funding arrangement are announced.

Municipalities will get a portion of HST and provincial gas tax revenue.

New advisory committee will look at regional governance.

Calgary Report Predicts NL Facing $1.8 Billion Deficit
 

I hope this number is off.... that's a big deficit!

VOCM News
April 29, 2015

http://www.vocm.com/newsarticle.asp?mn=2&ID=54353

That is very high but remember offshore royalties comprise a very large part of gov revenues and the average price of oil basically dropped 40-50%. Combine this with the costs of Muskrat Falls and this number may be possible.

It's not going to be that high. But it will be at least $1 billion. It probably would be that high without whatever tax increases and spending reductions are not included in the budget

Looks like HST is going up as Premier wouldn't answer that question at today's announcement.

Not looking forward to tomorrows budget at all. It's almost 100% certain that the HST is increasing by 2% (which is not that bad), what I fear the most is the new tax brackets that are rumored to be in the budget.

I know this is probably not a popular stance here in Newfoundland & Labrador but I would love to hear several departments being privatized tomorrow when the budget is tabled.

New tax brackets make sense. We only have three I believe. And they top out at 13.3%. NS goes up to 21%.

Health Care is by far the largest expense. Personally I would like to see a two-tiered system that keeps public health care but allows private options. Very unpopular view I know but I think it will have to come at some point.

That would be ideal. What I find amazing is all the doomsday comments being made about how it will be the death of healthcare in Newfoundland. I had the opportunity of living in an area where we had "2" systems so to speak. I have got to say it still had its problems but over all it is run much much better.

Yes it does make sense but still makes me gag every time I think about the possibility of having to pay more taxes. I have to wonder how many of those that work away and still live at home would stay here if the increase was as drastic as what some of the rumors are.

Personally for me I would rather see a significant reduction in paper pushing public servants and a dramatic reduction in public services offered by the government.

I'd like to see higher taxes, increased services, and a few nationalized industries, personally. I'm a bit tired of funneling money to private CEOs and international corporations when the government could fill many roles more fully (because of legislative power), efficiently (because of scale - pharmacare, for instance), and with better employee pay and benefits. Shortcomings in services don't mean government doesn't work, but that there are improvements to make. An attitude of fixing, rather than slashing and burning, would be nice.

I don't know many displaced newfies who would choose not to come home over a few percentage points in taxes,

</things that will not be in the budget>

CBC has confirmed the HST is going up by 2% (to 15%, which will tie us with Nova Scotia and, more or less, Quebec as the highest in the federation). The Province is going to expand the HST rebate for lower income earners to lessen the impact on them.

*****

We have similar views, overboard, overall. :)

I hate this move to raise the HST.

I wish there was no HST rise. I understand why there is, but I wish there wasn't.

Happy to see the privatization of long-term care. I'm generally all for privatization of non-essential services.