Suprise? Outrage? Should've seen it coming Jack! (en francais)

Well it looks like the Jack Pack is going to get what it deserves for propping up Paul Martin - NOTHING. Now you see it, now you don't.

NDP worry budget deal could 'tank'
Liberal promises hinge on having $2-billion surplus
(subscriber only content)

Simon Doyle
CanWest News Service
July 13, 2005

I'll give you the telling quote -

"Liberal MP John McKay, parliamentary secretary to Finance Minister Ralph Goodale, Tuesday told the Senate committee on finance, currently studying the bill, that the government will not know its 2005-06 surplus until August or September 2006. Not a penny from the NDP-negotiated budget can be spent until then, and only if the government has a $2-billion surplus."

NDP response -

"NDP MP Judy Wasylycia-Leis said the original agreement with the government stipulated the money was supposed to flow this fall after a surplus had been estimated, which she said is expected to be $8 or $9 billion.
"That's not the deal," said Wasylycia-Leis. The NDP may have to revisit the bargain with the government, she said, adding she expects the government to keep its commitments because it has readily sold them to the public."

Did they not even bother reading the text of their own backroom, hotel deal? I guess Buzz was too busy to read it for them.

I've been waiting for the other shoe to drop on this one for a while. I never did understand the NDPs claim that the money was going to start flowing immediately in the fall. If their intention was to have the money flowing based on estimates, you would think they would make sure it was written that way in the bill - it's not. Maybe if they hadn't rushed this through parliament they could have taken time to clarify things.

Payments for fiscal year 2005-2006
1. (1) Subject to subsection
(3), the Minister of Finance may, in respect of the fiscal year 2005-2006, make payments out of the Consolidated Revenue Fund up to the amount that is the difference between the amount that would, but for those payments, be the annual surplus as provided in the Public Accounts for that year prepared in accordance with sections 63 and 64 of the Financial Administration Act and $2 billion.

Payments for fiscal year 2006-2007
(2) Subject to subsection (3), the
Minister of Finance may, in respect of the fiscal year 2006-2007, make payments out of the Consolidated Revenue Fund up to the amount that is the difference between the amount that would, but for those payments, be the annual surplus as provided in the Public Accounts for that year prepared in accordance with sections 63 and 64 of the Financial Administration Act and $2 billion.

Maximum amount
(3) The payments made under subsections (1) and (2) shall not exceed in the
aggregate $4.5 billion.

At least Belinda got a Cabinet post for her vote. What did you get for your 19 votes Jack? A lesson in Liberal politics - and it's bound to be a lesson you won't forget for a long while. You should have listened to Ed Broadbent. History has a nasty way of repeating itself and the NDP has always come up on the short end of the stick after propping up a Liberal minority.

Paul Martin got to keep his government, the Jack Pack got their 15 minutes of fame and the Canadian people got screwed once again.

Well done Jack!

This story was crossposted to Colbert's Comment's Friday Open Trackback Party