The Spending Cuts' Impact on Saskatchewan
Yesterday I posted about the CPC spending cuts. Today I would like to follow up on the issue - particularly the Saskatchewan perpective.
As Greg over at Polical Staples has pointed out:
His reasoning being that since young people and aboriginals don't vote, this will not impact the CPC a whole lot. This has particualr note in Saskatchewan where the First Nations population is higher than elsewhere. what bothers me the most is one of the programs that they cut for First Nations people was one o the better ones.
"An academic study of the 2004 election, for example, underlines that fewer aboriginals are voting, and Canadians in lower income brackets and young people generally turn up less often at the ballot box."
The CPC cut off funding for an anti-smoking campaign aimed at First Nations and Inuit people, an effort that Conservative ministers suggested was wasteful and ineffective.
I agree with one of the NDP MP's who said:
And the cuts also target people (who Greg points out, don't vote) that need the help the most. People who are helped by say, groups who teach them to read:
Dennis Bevington, the NDP member for Western Arctic, said the $10.8-million cut means "more aboriginal Canadians will get sick and die due to smoking." The were "no consultations, no debate," he said, calling the decision "another sign of just how arrogant and controlling this prime minister is at a time when this country has record surpluses."
And further more, the impact on the museums in Saskchewan from the funding cuts is something the 12 MP's from Saskatchewan are going to here more about.
"This is a black day for us," said Wendy Desbrisay, executive director of the Canadian Literacy Movement. "We did not see this coming."She accused the federal government of "abdicating" its leadership role in encouraging a pan-Canadian literacy strategy.
