Forest help expected in budget
Prince George Citizen
February 12, 2008

Finance Minister Jim Flaherty said he will hand down a "cautious" surplus budget for tough economic times on February 26, but hinted there would be at least modest tax cuts for Canadians….

"We have some fiscal room, but it's tight, particularly in the next two years."…

Liberal leader Stephane Dion, who has suggested he is prepared to trigger an election if the budget doesn't meet his party's expectations, said the Liberals want targeted relief for the manufacturing and forestry sectors, measures to address poverty in the country and measures on the environment and climate change.

The NDP has made health care a top priority, particularly home care and the cost of drugs, along with education, child care and infrastructure improvements.

But Flaherty, who met with the opposition finance critics last week and said he expects to meet them again before Feb. 26, said some of the suggestions from the other parties would result in a deficit, which he said was not negotiable.

"I'm not going to be the finance minister that puts our country back into deficits," he said. "You don't throw money around when times are tight ... especially now in a time of economic slowdown."