OTTAWA, ON: In its pre-budget submission to the House of Commons Finance Committee, the Canadian Taxpayers Federation (CTF) is calling on the government to balance the budget in 2014 as promised by Stephen Harper during the 2011 election.

“The feds have made fair progress towards balancing the budget over the past two years but this comes after years of big spending,” said CTF Federal Director Gregory Thomas.

“The government needs to get to surplus in 2014-15 like Stephen Harper promised and make good on their pledge of tax relief for hardworking taxpayers.”

The government has added $165 billion in debt to its books since 2007-08. Interest payments on just this additional debt will cost taxpayers an accumulated $80 billion by 2018-19. CTF reforms will allow the government to balance the budget ahead of schedule and provide broad based tax relief for Canadians.

Among the reforms the CTF is calling for in its pre-budget submission are the transformation of Employment Insurance into personal savings accounts, scrapping corporate welfare, bringing government employee compensation in line with the private sector, reforming Equalization payments and giving control of health care back to the provinces through the elimination of the Canada Health Transfer.

In the 2011 federal election, Stephen Harper said: “We will reduce the cost of government through finding efficiencies through a thorough strategic and operating expense review. This will allow us to eliminate the deficit in 2014, a full year ahead of schedule.”

The government promised to allow income splitting for couples and to double the maximum allowable Tax Free Savings Account contribution, but only after the budget is balanced.

“Stephen Harper personally committed to Canadians that his government would balance the budget by 2014. It’s time for him to keep his promise,” concluded Thomas.

You can download the CTF’s 2014-15 Pre-budget submission HERE.