$25 billion per year less for public services. 57,000 jobs eliminated. The “worst cuts in modern history,” according to economists.

Is this what Canadians voted for on April 28?

The deep cuts to public services anticipated in the upcoming federal budget will do permanent damage to our capacity as a country to:

• Protect our water

• Build the post-carbon economy

• Achieve equal pay for equal work

• Access medicine and stay healthy

• Train our youth and our workforce

• Collect taxes from billionaires

At a time when Canadians unemployment is rising and many are struggling with the cost-of-living, the federal government’s austerity measures will only make life harder for us.

Where will the money go instead? Our government has announced plans to spend hundreds of billions on the military—mostly buying arms from the US. There is tremendous pressure to subsidize more money-losing pipelines and large-scale extraction.

Who is behind this agenda? In the face of a national crisis initiated by Trump, the CEOs of the largest companies in Canada have been pushing hard for a radical plan. Their vision: make Canada into a rip it and ship it, man camp economy based on exporting oil and mineral wealth.

Austerity, or deep cuts to public services, are a cornerstone of this agenda.

They’re not seeking this transformative plan because this will help Canadians deal with tariffs or the fallout from a trade war. They’re lobbying the highest levels of government to increase shareholder profits. If anything, Canada’s social safety net and regulations that support clean air and water are an obstacle to their ambitions.

The Council of Canadians has a different vision. Canada’s public services, and the fact that we care for our land, air and water, are what set us apart. These are the reasons we so strongly reject becoming the 51st state.

Write to Minister Champagne today: stop the cuts, build the Canada we want.