Message of the Day – Finance Minister of the Year Award

October 07, 2009

Canada will receive international recognition today when Minister Flaherty will be receiving the Finance Minister of the Year Award by Euromoney magazine. He will be accepting the Award on behalf of the Government of Canada at the G7 Finance Ministers Meeting in Istanbul. Here are the facts:
 

• Through Canada’s Economic Action Plan, our government is delivering results. Our $61 billion stimulus plan is helping the economy, creating and protecting jobs and safeguarding Canadians during the global recession.
• Canada’s ability to introduce such a sweeping action plan is the result of Canada having the best fiscal position in the G7 going into the current crisis, with the lowest debt-to-GDP ratio.
• The Award is just the latest international acknowledgement of the soundness of our policies and of Canada’s status as a leader and model for other countries.
• As a result of responsible fiscal management and effective regulation of our country’s financial system, Canadian banks are once again considered the world’s soundest by the World Economic Forum.
• The World Economic Forum ranked Canada’s economic, fiscal and financial strengths 9th, ahead of Britain, South Korea and Hong Kong. The International Monetary Fund recently forecast that among G7 countries, Canada will experience the second lowest economic contraction in 2009 and will enjoy the greatest growth in 2010.
• The loss of jobs in Canada has been less severe than in other countries – including the United States – where for the first time in a generation, Canada’s unemployment rate is a full percentage point less than the U.S. rate.
• Our Economic Action Plan is working – there are signs of recovery, but the situation is still fragile. There is more to do.
• Our government is committed to staying on course. We remain focused on the economy and on helping Canadians.