Mr. Speaker, it is, indeed, a pleasure to rise on behalf of my constituency to speak on budget 2014.

Before I start, I will point out that I will be sharing my time with my colleague, the Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister of Labour and for Western Economic Diversification.

As the Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister of Foreign Affairs and for International Human Rights, I travel a lot around the world representing Canada. Everywhere I go, I am always asked, “What did Canada do? How did you avoid the major ramifications of the recession that hit Europe, the Americans, and everyone?” It was because of the sound management this government provided under the leadership of the Prime Minister and the Minister of Finance, as well as other cabinet members.

Let us look at the bigger picture since 2006. The Liberals and NDP keep complaining. All we hear from them is spend, spend, spend. It is nitpicking. The real picture is this. Since taking office in 2006, we made sure that the GST was cut from 7% to 5%, that taxes were reduced, that income splitting was established, and that we created a tax-free savings account. We worked to ensure that Canadians had more money in their pockets, because more money in the pockets of Canadians is of greater benefit to consumers and the economy than having fat government programs like the NDP and Liberals keep saying we need.

The other point is that the government went through the exercise of cutting unnecessary expenses. There were reductions in expenditure areas that it was felt were not doing anything necessary for the country.

The combination of both of these things is where we stand today. As the finance minister said, by 2015 we will have balanced the budget. This would not happen if none of these measures were taken. The balancing of the budget allows us to have more money for the programs that we consider important, like health care, social services, and other critically important programs that Canadians want. Today, we stand at a threshold where the budget is going to be balanced.

In all of the speeches that the NDP and Liberals have made, we have not heard anything about balancing the budget. I remember when I came here, the Liberals were touting that they were going to balance the budget. Mr. Martin tried to balance the budget by cutting transfers to the provinces, which we did not do. We provided the necessary atmosphere in the economy for the economy to move forward and to create over a million jobs.

We are also working hard to ensure that people are working. That is what Canadians want. Therefore, this budget, after all of this, is based on getting people to work. I just heard the NDP and Liberals over there talking about EI surpluses and that there will be cuts. The important thing is getting people to work, that the people who have finished their schooling and apprenticeships all go to work, so this government decided to do that. There is now more money given to people so they can become apprentices. There is no point in getting a lot of foreign workers to do these jobs when we can train Canadians to do them, including those graduating high school.

This budget, through the Minister of Employment and Social Development, is focused on how to get Canadians work. The more Canadians work, the more taxes they pay, and the more consumer spending there will be. It is better for the economy in the long run. It is simple mathematics and economics that the NDP should know.

Most importantly, Canada is a resource-rich country. We are a trading nation. We have some of the best practices for mining and resource extraction. People from across the world come here to see how we do these things.

When I travel overseas, I go to newly developed countries like Mongolia and Tanzania, countries whose extractive sectors are now coming in. They look to us, and we tell them to come to Canada and look at our regulations, which they can then apply back in their countries so that they can have the benefit of natural resources for their citizens.

This is the key message that we give out. Countries listen to us. I just returned from Ethiopia. Its mining sector is interested in seeing Canada's best practices, because it has identified Canada as one of the best places where the resource sector is properly utilized to the benefit of its people.

The resource sector needs to be developed. We find it very strange that the same people on the other side who are getting up and saying that they want this expenditure and that expenditure, and that things are bad and everything, are the ones who oppose the pipeline, which would take our resources to markets around the world.

Canada is one of the best places. Yes, there is always room for improvement. The NDP members are usually stopping things from happening. They are getting up and saying no on trade deals. They say no on resource extraction. They say no on everything. I do not know where they think the money comes from. Only the NDP members know where this money will come from to meet all the needs of the excellent programs we have.

It is important to note that our government has not cut critical programs that are needed. We will refocus the resources we have to the areas where they will be productive, where Canadians will get the most benefit. That is what responsible government is all about. Responsible government is not about standing up and throwing money here and there, as the NDP would do.

At the same time, the government is very proud of having signed trade deals around the world, FIPA agreements and trade deals. This will allow our companies to go out and do what they are best at doing: sell their products and services, which are very good.

The free trade agreement with the European Union and the NAFTA, these are all beneficial to businesses. They are all excited. This is the economy expanding, and an expanding economy means better jobs for Canadians; and better jobs for Canadians mean more money in the economy, which all goes towards ensuring a better future for Canadians, young and old. Let us not forget the seniors who rely on many of the programs we have.

I give full credit to the Prime Minister and the Minister of Finance for this budget. They have chosen this path and we are now standing proudly to say that we will balance the budget in 2015. What more could people want?

The criticism we are hearing is that we are doing this because an election year is coming, or that it is a no-show budget, or that it is a boring budget. I would rather have a boring budget if it means we are staying on track and that by 2015 we will have a balanced budget with a surplus. We have worked for that since forming government in 2006.

Deepak Obhrai

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