The 2009 budget calls for almost $12 billion in new infrastructure spending through the end of 2011, most of it landing in short-term projects and upgrades to universities and colleges.
“In the short term much of the focus will be on the spending side and infrastructure and that’s going to provide a quick impact to the extent that they can fast-track it,” said Craig Wright, chief economist at RBC Economics.
Including provincial contributions, the government says the total comes to slightly less than $21 billion.
The federal spending is concentrated in four types of projects:
> $6.4 billion in short-term provincial, territorial and municipal projects aimed at renewing roads, sewers, and so-called “green” projects to clean the air, water and land;
> $3.1 billion for the modernization of universities and other learning institutions, health-care information systems and broadband services in rural Canada;
> $515 million on First Nations infrastructure, including the renovation of schools, access to drinking water, health care and policing;
> $716 million in federal projects such as passenger rail services, bridges, highways, new harbours for small boats and border crossings.
The government is aiming to fast-track the approval process for the shorter-term projects, which include road, sewer and water upgrades in Quebec City; the Summerside Wind Energy program in Prince Edward Island; upgrades to the TransCanada highway and federal bridges in Newfoundland and Labrador and Nova Scotia; the Centreport Project at Inland Port in Winnipeg; the Telus World of Science in Calgary; and the Piqqusilirivvik cultural facility in Nunavut.
About $2 billion is earmarked precisely for post-secondary institutions, including the College of New Caledonia in B.C., Great Plains College in Saskatchewan, Winnipeg Technical College in Manitoba, Durham College of Applied Arts and Technology in Ontario, and several others.
In the health-care realm, several federal labs will see upgrades and $500 million will go toward converting the health records of half of all Canadians into electronic form.
In terms of environmentally friendly infrastructure initiatives, the budget allocates $1 billion over five years for the creation of a Green Infrastructure Fund. The fund will allocate money based on merit to support green infrastructure projects on a cost-shared basis. This includes infrastructure that supports a focus on the creation of sustainable energy, such as modern energy transmission lines, which will contribute to improved air quality and lower carbon emissions.
Jeff Rubin, chief economist for CIBC World Markets, says he expects to see a lot more spending by on green initiatives governments, regardless of their political stripe.
“I think the deficits we’re going to see the in next three to four years are going to be a multiple of the deficits that are projected in this budget,” says Rubin. “Another year of these kinds of economic conditions and Canadians are going to want to see much greater involvement from their government.”
IE