Tories blasted over $130M advertising budget

With the second full day of Parliament in the books, opposition parties focused on the Tories spending habits and hammered the feds over their increase on advertising funding.

CTV News Channel: Dan Matheson, Power Play

A CTV correspondent says despite most Canadians belief that the Conservatives have done a good job at managing the economy, the Liberals drilled the Tories on money mismanagement of prisons, fighter jets, and the G20

Question period: Liberals question the Tories

The Grits question the Tories over the handling of funds and taxpayers money. Liberal Leader Michael Ignatieff says the feds have mixed up their priorities and have failed to dig Canada out of the debt they put the country in.

Question period: NDP hammers the Tories

NDP Leader Jack Layton questions the Tories over their boost to advertising funds, calling it shameless self promotion. He says the Tories have turned a blind eye on the most vulnerable Canadians.

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Government House Leader John Baird responds to a question during Question Period in the House of Commons on Parliament Hill in Ottawa, Tuesday September 21, 2010. (Sean Kilpatrick / THE CANADIAN PRESS)

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CTV.ca News Staff

Date: Tue. Sep. 21 2010 8:34 PM ET

The opposition hammered the Conservatives in question period Tuesday over a sharp spike in the government's advertising budget as the country recovers from the economic downturn.

Liberal Leader Michael Ignatieff asked in French how the government explains a whopping 64 per cent increase in marketing costs to the Canadian public, "who can't make ends meet?"

Government House Leader John Baird, speaking for the prime minister who is attending a UN conference in New York, defended the hike in spending by saying the Tories had an "important responsibility to be open and to be transparent about the various programs that are part of the Economic Action Plan."

Baird also pointed out that part of the increase is explained by last year's $24-million campaign to inform Canadians about the H1N1 vaccine program.

The verbal sparring stemmed from a report published in Tuesday's Globe and Mail that said the government's ad budget for 2009-2010 hit a record $130 million, more than $50 million over the previous year's budget. The total is also more than three times higher than the $41.3 million budget of 2005-2006, when the Tories took office.

The most significant chunk of the $130 million was the $49.5 million spent on advertisements for the government's Economic Action Plan as Baird claimed, the Globe reported.

Speaking in French, NDP Leader Jack Layton accused the government of dragging its heels on boosting pension benefits for senior citizens while increasing its spending on "self promotion.

"What is the finance minister's strategy to help the middle class, putting up bigger signs?" Layton asked.

Baird answered that the government had a responsibility to make Canadians aware of the measures they "had to proactively be involved with, like the home renovation tax credit."

The Liberals said Tuesday the Economic Action Plan ads were unnecessary, given that government polling data indicates more than 93 per cent of Canadians say the ads had no impact on them.

"The government's own polling data shows that the ads had no effect on Canadians whatsoever," Liberal infrastructure critic John McCallum said in a statement. "These ads were never intended to provide Canadians with information they could use -- they were just Conservative propaganda, paid for with record levels of wasted taxpayer funds."

Comments are now closed for this story

Rev
said

I could thing of a lot of useful things to use 130million on..... advertising could be on that list but would take up a very VERY small fraction of that. Where the heck is all that money going? Funneled to a secret military program?

Damon
said

The opposition is critical BECAUSEWhat part of record spending on advertising don't you get? What part of massive increase over the previous year aren't you following?Oh H1N1 advertising is the big justification, that's right, what a disaster that was. We paid way too much for vaccines (a lot of which we didn't use). We spent way too much for advertising it and in the end we barely needed it (I passed on the vaccine, got H1N1, recovered in a few days).I can't even imagine what we'll spend if there is ever a serious pandemic.

Damon
said

TR "So let's save the useless gun registry. After all...what's $2 billion. It isn't needed elsewhere."Get a clue, the 2 billion has ALREADY been spent. Yes it was excessive but that debate is OVER.The debate on the long gun is over 4 million a YEAR for maintenance. So yes, 130 million in advertising for 1 year while acting like 4 million a year is too much is beyond inconsistent.

Colleen in BC
said

@calgarian: Why do we need the long gun registry either? Those who are proponents of the long gun registry - please show us 10 cases where the registry actually prevented crimes. I doubt there are actually any.

James
said

130 million to say "Look at me!!!"? Unreal. All I've ever seen is the Conservatives spending money on photo op after photo op. Constantly just promoting their smug selves. It's out of control... And to all of you saying "Yeah, but, the Liberals this, the Liberals that, blah, blah, blah"... Fine, but this isn't a finger pointing game. It's about doing what's right with your money no matter who's in charge..... This country needs a radically new party to shake things up a bit. I'm sick and tired of these 'old boys clubs' who really don't do anything but spend our money on themselves.

Margie
said

How quickly people forget ADSCAM! How could Iggy possibly stand in parliament and whine about advertising costs when his party threw millions, at their Quebec friends, for no advertising at all! Give your head a shake Igg! Stephen Harper is doing exactly what every other government has done. Just take a look at mcGuinty, in Ontario, spending millions on advertising to try to convince taxpayers that his stupid programs, and wasted tax dollars, are actually good for us!

Liberal Red, and read
said

They already have signs to tell you that work is being done, they read "MEN AT WORK" and "CONSTRUCTION AHEAD" every time I have to sit waiting for a backhoe or cement truck to get out of the way, I am aware that my dollars are at work, cut the crap spending on BS and put it to use, you know how much more cement you can buy with $130 million??? Enough to seal the fate of the Conservative Government, that's for sure!!!

Redneck Vic
said

Let me get this right! The Liberals & the NDP are saying what they spent on advertising was too much but were they not the ones that have said from the start that the Conservatives were not spending enough on this recession and that they would spend a lot more?? Oh yes my friends i have actual comments from Both Question Period & Power Play from both the Liberals & the NDP saying that the Conservatives were not spending enough to save the Canadian economy. Now on advertising how many jobs did the $130 million create or save in the advertising industry & did it not help out the advertising industry that kept telling Canadians how badly they were hurting?

Liberal to the core
said

All of the Conservative supporters keep going on about "ad-scam" and the Liberals stealing money to give to their friends. Perhaps the fact is true that they re-directed funds, but the fact is they produced continuous surpluses during their time in power, follow the trail of Conservative power, and look at how fast the Conservatives have destroyed any chance of a positive economy, go ahead and blame the "world recession" for this downturn, what's Mulroney's excuse? Let me guess, the Government before him left him with nothing but trouble??? I would rather my Government steal from us and keep us on a steadily improving course, than waste our money on self gloating, they don't need to tell us where the money is going, we have watch dogs to tell us if they are wasting our money, although I'm not sure where the watch dogs were when they wasted that much money on useless signs.Time to give the ball back to the Liberals and go home to Alberta Stephen, or maybe you can go defend the arctic sovereignty, I'm sure once the Liberals are back in power they will be able to improve things enough to get a job even for you!And PS if you are commenting and you see a red squiggly line under your words it likely means you are a Conservative backer, check your spelling, you're making your party look ba....worse!

Bruce C.
said

Pocket change for the cons who treat Canadians like an ATM. I guess we just add it to the billions wasted on stealth aircraft to fight???, or the billions wasted on the G8/G20 fiasco, or the half billion given to bribe the UN to let us pretty please have a chair at the big table. I sometimes wonder if Conservatives even have a clue how poor a lot of us are.

Michael
said

DEAR MR. HARPER, MR. IGNATIEFF, MR. LAYTON.... I have a message for all of you.... YOU ARE SPENDING WAY WAY WAY WAY WAY TOO MUCH. The only promises you should be making is the promise to reevaluate every government program and promise to cancel every one which is redundant, unneeded and wasteful. STOP WASTING OUR MONEY.

John Daintree
said

This is just another example of Harper's megalomania. I have voted for the Conservatives for years. I doubt if I will again!

merricktopia
said

A ton of different views here naturally. But is there anyone out there who can express their view and NOT resort to slander and personal attacks? I see people here with aliases referring to themselves as "intelligent" or a "professor". I will take your word for it that you are all those things and more. But not when you lower yourself to the lowest common denominator by using insults and personal attacks on other individuals or groups. It's everything that's wrong with our political & social culture.

Irritable Canadian
said

Ah yes, here comes the old Conservative canard about the "sponsorship scandal". "BOO! Liberals are evil!! BOOO!" Scared? I'm not. I'm tired of ALL of them. Same arguments, same crap, same people... nothing ever changes in this country... Conservatives, Liberals, NDP... they're all bad.

Sapper d
said

$130 million is about half of the monies owed to Disabled Veterans from the governments clawback of SISIP benefits. End the sisip clawback before we admit another boat load of immigrants, register any firearms, pay out lawsuits to terrorists or any other reckless spending that this government sees fit.

Chris in Ontariariariari-Oh!
said

Do you think for one second that the liberals would operate any differently?Just look in Ontario at the spending McGuinty does on advertising if you were to compare it on scale I would be willing to bet they would have little to talk about as he has his red feel good signs everywhere not to mention what he pays his spin doctors to send his message over the internet.The government spends money to inform the masses but if they do little advertising they are accused of being secretive and having a hidden agenda,where do you win as this has been going on for years by both national parties and for the liberals to take the high horse on this one is purely hypocritical.You could also use the argument that advertising too provides an economic stimulus so as the stimulus money winds down then therefore should the advertising dollars.More of nothing from a desperate party with a pathetic leader with little to offer other than the same old crap from the past.Move on.

Albertaboy111
said

And we still don't know exactly where the stimulus was spent and how much. Just the odd sign thrown up around the country that had a dollar value. Why waste all that money instead of just making a list of each project, what was done, and how much it costs. Why can't this be done instead of just a sign here, and a sign there. We still don't have a full report of the value we got for our money. Almost seems like a distractionary method to make people think it's being spent well, while not telling us where the bulk of the money was spent. Make it seem like your telling us, so you don't have to actually tell us.

L
said

Wow, people will really use any excuse to attack the conservatives won't they? The government of Canada has always advertised, this is not a Conservative phenomenon. They were not advertising the party, they were advertising for the CANADA action plan, which the other parties voted for too by the way. Why don't the other parties support showing Canadians that you are actually doing something for them? Why doesn't the opposition realize they too form the government, all MPs are supposed to represent us. Also, the Libs and NDP would have had a similar budget, given the chance, for them to claim they won't is more partisan ramblings and nothing more. Yes, this amount is excessive, yes, we could spend the money on better things, but never believe for one moment the other parties, if in power, wouldn't have done the exact same thing. Plus, ads are more expensive now, if you took account of inflation, I doubt they spent much more than other governments have in the past. Last year was a year of big events, the rescession, swine flu etc that the population had to be informed about. No one can stand watching the joke that is question period or the mouthpieces on the news every night, so ads it is, there isn't another way to reach the masses that would be effective. Now, if the MP children can get along and do something good for this country...that would really be worth an ad!

tc
said

Guess what people. This is just one thing that the oppostion picks and choices to complain about.. Tomorrow will be something else. You all think a government is run on a wing and a prayer. Every government spends money on things. It is part of running a country. But the opposition chooses to ignore that fact. The liberals manage to forget how much they spent/wasted/stole when in power and the NDP/BLoc havent a clue because they have never been and never will be in power in Canada.

Ontario Jim
said

Are your memories really that short? It was the opposition that demanded this spending to stimulate the economy. Now they're complaining about "stimulating the economy" because the economy is weak? I can't believe how many people fall for this.

Cam
said

@Prof. Pye Chartt Nice rant prof don't you watch the news? Harper & Flarethy are on the news all the time bragging about their action plan, you seem to be the only one blaming the opposition for an action plan your leader is taking credit for. Please prof tell me what did Canadians get out of this 130 million that was given to an American company to make lottery style cheques & signs advertising the conservative party. Why does Canada's national debit clock show our country going into debit as we speak at a rate of 6 million dollars per hour. How is this good fiscal management. Give it a break blaming opposition parties your nit wit hero is taking credit for stimulus spending, he thinks he did a good thing & he's the one that decided to extend it. Your partisan crap makes me sick. Everyday Canada is going 144 million dollars deeper in debit.

FCS
said

I happen to remember the Liberals blowing 4 times as much in Quebec building golf courses and sponsoring everything under the sun with absolutely no oversite after the referendum in what is now seen as a good investment. Please explain to me how this is any different?

MARG MM
said

Personally, I was glad to see the signs regarding the improvements that are being done along the Trans-Canada highway. They tell us what is being done, how much it is costing, and gives a completion date. Open and transparent wouldn't you say? Let's not pretend that the Liberals didn't advertise during their times in Government. One thing for sure, the Conservatives will have a very hard time getting their message across to the general public during the next election, as the media seems to favour comments from and gives far more air time to the Liberal/NDP.

Jay
said

To all who beleive in the Conservative- WAKE UP- they are losers.They have ruined everything that has been done in the last 20 years.They have sold out to the Americnas.Baird Clements and Flarthey are former politican who have been kicked out of provincial polotics- The Conservative CANNOT answer any question asked them SMART IN UP PEOPLE

Mike
said

That's disgusting, the conservative party should have to pay that back to the tax payers. It was a US company that was given the contract to make these signs (for B.C.), this in no way benefited Canadians. I see those signs every where, but I don't see any action. Canada's national debit clock is spinning to beat the band. The debit clock shows us going into debit at a rate of 6 million dollars per hour, were paying 84 million per day in interest on our 543 billion dollar national debit. How is this good management? Google the national debit clock yourself, it's gosh darn scary. We need an election now, history shows us the liberals proved to be much better money managers than these neocons.

farmer fred
said

Maybe if John Baird was not an Ottawa elitist he would realize that the costs of many everyday items have gone up eating far into the fixed income of seniors thanks to his government and the Dalton gang's robbery called the HST. Wake up you fools in Ottawa to what is really happening to real people outside your elitist bubble.

Spence in Ontario
said

I don't care what you're position is normally is on the parties but the $130 million advertising budget is a waste no matter what way you look at it. We know the cons have used partisan messaging with gov't money when they shouldn't have. We also had the the cheque fiasco earlier this year with the conservative party logo or MPs names as well. The cons, particularly the former reform members campaigned for years against the use of tax dollars for partisan use so it is quite hypocritical to turn around and do it on such a large scale.

JOB
said

socialism does work....just don't use the u.s.s.r model as a reference or blue print, Whats crazy is people forget that capatilism is what got us into this mess, and we will continue to do so as long as greed and the interest of the share holders trump the interest of humanity....add that to a goverment that is useless, we should be better...but were notenjoy your decline humanity....

Imperfect but I'll vote Conservative
said

Let them blast away .... there may be some truth to overspending but WHO WOULD YOU REPLACE THIS GOVERNMENT WITH? .....a bunch of directionless sycophants who haven't stopped whining since Feb 6, 2006?? Get serious people. Stop and think a moment. The Liberals "BIG IG" doesn't have anything to offer Canadians except carbon taxes, registry taxes, HST taxes (see how McGuinty screwed Ontario), etc... I'll stay with the Conservatives I know than the Liebrals I remember who screwed us blind when in power over Adscam and other scandals.

5th Generation Canadian
said

Millions for ads with no better purpose than partisan political messages. And now they're promising to cut E.I. benefits and increase E.I. premiums when so many are still unemployed or underemployed. Shame on them.

Keith in Brampton
said

The Tories had an "important responsibility to be open and to be transparent about the various programs that are part of the Economic Action Plan." Open and transparent, Mr. Baird? Well, I guess there's a first time for everything. But did you have to be so open with MY wallet while you were at it? To be frank, this smells like Tory campaigning at taxpayers' expense.

daryn
said

Max-a-Million: if you think the Conservatives are doing fine, let me manage your finances, give me power of attourney and I will do what the Conservatives are doing, then you can tell me if they are doing well or not. They are taking money from middle class and below and giving it to corporations and their rich friends. Get a grip on reality.

My Opinion
said

Remember the "Participaction" program and the "One-Ton Challenge"? Weren't the Liberals the instigators of these programs? Do you remember seeing Participaction signs everywhere and commercials on TV and Radio? Remember Rick Mercer forever promoting the "One-Ton Challenge"? Do you think this promotion was free? I bet it was over $130 million altogether.

Gel
said

How mach did the Libs spend on the adscam and they didn't even get anything for it...it was a SCAM! At least the conservatives get the advertising...it's actually the only way they can hope to level the playing field in the heavily leftist media in this country. Unfirtunately the media and news outlets of canada were mostly bught and payed for by Liberal patronage appointments and money so they lean heavily to the left...so if the conservatives want to get thier message out fairly they have to buy air time... better they do it up front and in the open rather than in backroom deals and other such means that were used by Trudeau and his fabian socialists in the 70's. But Of course the lefties will be all over this 160 million like it was the last drop in the tank ... until they want money for more beurocracy and social programs then it will be ok to raise taxes and run a deficit to fund them. THERE ARE BIGGER ISSUES THAN THIS folks lets stop talking about how the conservatives won't work with the other parties and lets start leaning on the minority parties to start working with the elcted government... I'm sick of the Liberal whining...you had your terms and then got turfed...so step back and do what needs be done until your ready to try again.

BM
said

It cracks me up at how much the Canadian government advertises itself. My favorites are the tv ads for the Canadian Mint; like if they don't advertise, people will stop using money or something.

Prof. Pye Chartt
said

As an honest, moderate libertarian who throws his support behind the Conservative party because, well, every intelligent person knows (and only idiots don't know) that liberalism and socialism are abject failures, and that the foolish mixture of the two constitutes a lethal and asinine combination, the federal "Economic Action Plan" implemented by the Conservative government, with the forceful enthusiasm of the Opposition (spare me the ridiculous nonsense that the Liberals would have stuck to their bogus $13B fictitious stimulus plan in the ultimate depths of a severe and virtually unprecedented recession), was a sad and unfortunate waste of billions of dollars, and the incessant advertising to flog it only made the desperate burning of our tax dollars more difficult to stomach. Glad that the self-interested bank economists could have their way. (P.S. Are the bitter partisan accusations of the snorting parliamentary piggies in Opposition going to mark the "news" headlines all this week? Oh, probably.)

Will
said

This government always seem to say the right thing while doing the complete opposite.

David
said

It is true, Canadian ignorance is growing, and more may need to be done to inform the public: what is being done and what you as a Canadian can do. "Advertising" is a broad political excuse to point a finger of condemnation when it should be credit. If there is money for long gun registrations, that don't work, you would think there was money for keeping all Canadians informed about what is going on in their country. What can you do, as a Canadian, to help; be sure to vote in the next election then you have not reason to complain. Put people in that care not people that constantly tear everything apart and complain.

Intelligent Liberal
said

Iggy asked his question in French, Layton asked his question in French, but Baird answered in ENGLISH!Canadians want to know was this advertising bi-lingual, and was the English lettering proprtionatley sized in Quebec relative to French size lettering?

bruno
said

This government seems to have no problem with wasting our tax dollars to shamefully promote themselves. Tax dollars are to be used for the public good, not the Conservative party's good. Shame!

Carla of the West
said

It reminds me of big drug companies who spend more on advertising - telling us how great their drugs are - than they spend on actually developing great drugs. Dear CPC - if you were really that good - you wouldn't need to tell me how good you are.

James T
said

As a marketing professional, I know the value of "shameless self-promotion". It is an effective tool when delivered to an appreciative and understanding audience. It is a land mine you've already stepped on when delivered to an audience that is neither. And for the iceing on the cake, you the have Darth Sweater Vest's mastiff try to tell us that "they" - Harper's Government - needed to be open and transparent...

Max-a-Million
said

The government is criticized at every opportunity, no matter what it is. The opposition opposes vehemently, acting like 5 year olds, shouting and hollering, the media sensationalizes and the un-educated get up in arms over the news. Checking around the world and measuring our government's performance over the last 3 years during the worst economic situation the world has ever seen and I have to feel that Mr. Harper et al are doing just fine.

kevin calgary
said

@calgarian try one year. if you think for 1sec that it's a million a year................ have another beer!

TR Stouffville
said

$2 billion could have purchased quite a few MRI units. $2 billion could have opened quite a few new hospitals. $2 billion could have put hundreds of police officers on the front lines, where they are needed. $2 billion could have put a lot more into infrastructure. Get my drift? So let's save the useless gun registry. After all...what's $2 billion. It isn't needed elsewhere. At least the $130 million told Canadians where their money is being spent, just in case you Lieberals out there haven't noticed.

Paul Vanoouver Island
said

Remember the Conservatives got caught with their pants down with the Conservative logo put prominently on blown up government cheques for regional development. Conservatives are all about photo ops at our expense. Remember the one of Harper on the ice-floe in the Artic - that photo op cost taxpayers $1.5 million to stage. Remember the G8-20 the $1.3 billion waste, and the Fake Lake; it goes on and one with this gang, foolishy spending our hard earned money.

Koby1Kanoby
said

I'd like to see all taxpaying Canadians rally together to sue the Conservative Party for the $49.5 million spent on advertisements for the government's Economic Action Plan.

Calgarian
said

$130 million is enough to pay for the long-gun registry for about 32 years.

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