Federal Budget: Davos, Switzerland

Government Spending Dept: Other priorities have emerged through speeches by ministers, answers to media questions and leaks. This budget promotes job growth through tight controls on government spending and encourages more skilled immigrants while limiting the ability of immigrants already here to bring their families into Canada, according to Globe and Mail. An online survey conducted in mid-March, in which about 400 readers revealed their hopes and fears for the federal budget, reflects those strong generational tensions among Canadians and stephen Harper laid out this budget s agenda in an address at the World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland, two months ago. Perhaps the most ambitious and controversial of changes hinted at will be in the area of retirement reform. The Prime Minister says changes to Old Age Security are needed so that the program will be sustainable for future generations. But it s the older generations who will receive more money. To ensure the pension system is sustainable, younger workers will have to wait longer before they qualify for Old Age Security. New regulations will promote the energy economy while playing down environmental protection. And there will be little, if anything, for workers in seasonal industries in poorer provinces. (www.immigrantscanada.com). As reported in the news.