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At Christmas, Let's Count
Canada's Blessings
Innisfil Scope
December 12, 2011
by Peter Van Loan, MP, York-Simcoe
As we look around the world this Christmas,
we can count ourselves fortunate to be
Canadian.
In the Mid-East, people
struggle for freedom, while those in places
like the Congo and Russia, see their hopes
of democracy trampled. Here in Canada, our
freedoms are so abundantly exercised that we
have had three peaceful elections - one at
every level of government - in a year.
While countries in Europe are gripped
with a debt crisis, Canada has the lowest
debt of the major developed economies (G-7
countries).
Elsewhere, unemployment
ranges from 9% to over 20%. In Canada, it's
still too high - but we have 600,000 new
jobs since the recession, and an
unemployment rate closer to 7%.
Economies are stagnant, without growth,
around the world. But Canada is showing the
strongest economic growth in the G-7 - and
is projected to do so into the future
according to international experts.
In other countries, governments have bailed
out banks with billions of taxpayers’
dollars, or banks have failed with billions
in savings lost. But the World Economic
Forum has repeatedly selected Canada as
having the world's soundest banking system -
with no failures or bailouts.
In a
world facing increasing demand for resources
and commodities, Canada has what the world
wants. From the grains and vegetables our
farmers produce (including locally), to our
minerals and energy resources, we can expect
to be increasingly prosperous meeting global
demand into the future.
And with
Canada leading the world on free trade -
having signed several new deals, and an
agreement with the European Union on the way
- we are increasingly well-positioned in a
global economy.
Visitors count Canada
as one of the safest countries in the world.
While crime still exists, and the
government's tackling crime agenda
continues, crime rates are falling.
Locally, Lake Simcoe still needs work - but
it's health is improving. Perhaps thanks in
part to a $30 million federal clean-up fund,
phosphorous levels are edging down, and long
absent fish species are returning.
Our future is bright. With the most skilled
workforce in the world, we are well-equipped
to meet changing challenges in the modern
economy.
Our children are performing
better in school, with better health than
the generation before.
The world
remains a troubled place today - and the
economic challenges are real - but as
Canadians, we can truly claim to be living
in the best country in the world.
As
I gather with my family this Christmas, we
will undoubted reflect on Canada's fortunate
position, and count our blessings - as a
family and a country.
I wish you and
your family the same - and let's join
together in wishing for a peaceful and
prosperous 2012.
-30-
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