Editor; Black Press
If Prime Minister Stephen Harper is serious about wanting a low-cost way to create jobs and stimulate the economy, his upcoming budget should act on NDP Leader Jack Layton’s proposal to restore the Conservatives’ ecoENERGY Retrofit program.
The ecoENERGY program is a no-risk investment for the federal government. It generates more tax revenue than it costs in incentives. It only pays those incentives to homeowners after jobs are created and retrofit work is completed.
Best of all, it creates thousands of jobs across the country.
The Heating, Refrigeration and Air Conditioning Institute of Canada (HRAI), representing 1,300 companies, has already asked Mr. Harper to restore the ecoENERGY program.
According to HRAI’s calculations, a $1 billion federal ecoENERGY program, with matching grants from the provinces, could create 350,000 person-years of employment and generate total government revenue of $5 billion.
Clearly, a restored ecoENERGY program is a highly effective way to improve Canada’s economy. When homeowners make energy-saving renovations, they lower their energy bills, create local jobs, and free up cash for more consumer spending.
A government serious about low-cost job creation and economic stimulus should restore the ecoENERGY program in the upcoming federal budget.
Jeff Murdock
Building Insight Technologies Inc., Vancouver
