The Canadian federal government may face a more grave fiscal situation in coming years if appropriate steps are not taken to balance the deficit, argued a Parliament budget leader Tuesday.
Kevin Page told the House of Commons finance committee that the country's aging population, as well as slow growth in productivity have been chief obstacles in returning to a budget surplus, adding that current spending freezes will not be enough to prevent an estimated $10 billion deficit by 2015.
"We do not have sustainable fiscal structure,'' Postmedia News quotes Page as saying. "A significant delay in taking fiscal action substantially increases the required amount of corrective measures.''
Finance Minister Jim Flaherty is expected to tender the 2011 fiscal budget this March, which Page claimed will offer "a frank picture of the short- and medium-term planning environment and budgetary constraints.''
However, Ottawa has reported yearly drops in the federal deficit since 2009, recording a $56 billion shortfall in the 2009-10 fiscal year, as well as an anticipated $45 billion for the period ending this March.
As the government originally projected a surplus by mid-decade, many conservatives - including Prime Minister Stephen Harper - have called for additional cuts in corporate income tax rates, which are expected to fall to 15 percent next year.
