The New Democrat M-P for Essex is blasting the Trudeau government over its latest economic outlook.
Tracey Ramsey says the fall economic update fails to address any local issues like the impact of steel and aluminium tariffs on the manufacturing sector and how the newly minted United States-Mexico-Canada Agreement could hurt the dairy and poultry industry.
"We know that the Liberals have collected over $500-million in counter-tariffs from the steel and aluminium, but we didn't see any accounting of that and we don't see any way to make sure that that money starts to get down to the ground," says Ramsey. "We know that, at this point, it's not getting to businesses and it's not getting to workers who, unfortunately, are losing their jobs."
Finance Minister Bill Morneau says the fall fiscal update released Wednesday is the Liberal government's response to dealing with challenges posed by aggressive moves south of the border.
Prime Minister Justin Trudeau has come under fire from the opposition for running big deficits, but has stated the Liberal government will continue its plan to help the middle class.
Ramsey thinks the Liberals missed an opportunity for real change.
"We know that people are having a hard time paying for their mortgages, their student debts, their car loans," she says. "People are making less money and things are becoming unaffordable and what we continue to see is just budgets that are really fantastic for corporations, but not that great for people who are struggling, living paycheck to paycheck."
She wants to see social service improvements over corporate tax breaks.
"How is it that we have corporations going to be able to write off things like a corporate jet or limousine, but people can't afford their medication?," says Ramsey. "These are really glaring examples of how the Liberals really continue to provide for corporations, but they're leaving people completely out of their economic equation."
According to the fall economic update, the monthly deficit for September 2018 was $1.4-billion — smaller than last year's $3.3-billion.
With files from Gord Bacon