OTTAWA, ON: The Canadian Taxpayers Federation (CTF) marked a milestone in Canada’s debt history today, holding a major stop on its National Debt Clock Tour in front of Parliament Hill. At 11 minutes and 25 seconds after midnight on March 18th, the Debt Clock will roll over the $562,881,000,000 mark - the previous record set in 1997. At that time, the government will have re-borrowed the $105 billion in debt paid down between 1997 and 2008 according to its current projections.
Since the Debt Clock was banned from Parliament Hill, the CTF held its event on Wellington Street in front of the Peace Tower.
“Every party in Parliament is responsible for the Debt Clock spinning out of control”, said CTF national research director and acting federal director Derek Fildebrandt. “Every national party leader promised balanced budgets during the last election. Yet when the opposition parties demanded deficit budgets, the government gleefully obliged. The result is that every dollar of debt paid down between 1997 and 2008 has been wiped-out after only a few short years of reckless spending.”
The National Debt Clock Tour left Victoria, B.C. on February 22 and is scheduled to conclude in Halifax, NS by the end of the month.
“On the coast-to-coast National Debt Clock Tour, we have a straight-forward message of fiscal restraint for our politicians: cut spending, balance the budget and stop this clock.”
Meant to serve as a visual medium for Canadians to understand the 12-figure magnitude of the debt, Fildebrandt said that, “The Debt Clock shows in real time that based on current Finance Canada projections, we are borrowing $124.4 million a day, or $1,439.62 a second that we do not have.”
“The last time that the federal government ran ‘temporary’ deficits, they lasted for 27 consecutive years. It is a legacy that we are still paying for today,” concluded Fildebrandt
The CTF restored the original 12’ x 6’ Debt Clock which it toured across Canada between 1993 and 1997.
Canadians can watch the debt reach this historic milestone at debtclock.ca.
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Contact: Acting Federal Director & National Research Director
1-800-265-0442 (office) or 613-794-6554 (mobile)
[email protected]
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