Released on March 15, 1995
Agriculture and Food Minister Darrel Cunningham and Highways andTransportation Minister Andy Renaud today released results of polling
conducted on the federal budget.
In the survey, conducted over the last week, more than 1,500
Saskatchewan people were contacted for their views on the federal
budget. A survey of this size has a margin of error of plus or minus
2.6 per cent.
"The results confirm that people feel the federal budget was unfair to
Saskatchewan, failed to implement a new national transportation
strategy, and did not deal adequately with Canada's deficit problem,"
Cunningham said.
"For example, Saskatchewan people say the deficit is the single most
important issue to be dealt with by the federal government (49 per
cent), while more than 59 per cent of those polled are not satisfied
with how the federal government has addressed the issue. More than
half the people surveyed (54 per cent) said that program cuts in the
federal budget were not made fairly as between the regions of Canada.
In fact 86 per cent of those people feel Saskatchewan received harsher
treatment than other regions."
Renaud said that 84 per cent of those surveyed are concerned about the
future of farming because of the impact of the federal budget.
"The federal budget totally eliminates transportation subsidies for
western grain farmers, while central Canadian dairy farmers saw only a
30 per cent reduction in subsidies," Renaud said. "Sixty-one per cent
of people surveyed feel this kind of regional disparity is unfair to
Saskatchewan.
"As far as Saskatchewan people are concerned the federal budget has
clearly failed the basic test of fairness. This information shows the
need for the federal government to be prepared to deal with its budget
decisions in a sensitive and flexible way to address the concerns
raised by Saskatchewan people."
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For more information, contact:
Dave Burdeniuk
Media Relations
Regina
Phone: 787-6349