Canada Conservatives slash federal budget

OTTAWA, March 29 (UPI) -- Canada's Conservative government released a federal budget Thursday in Ottawa, introducing a document that cuts billions in spending and slashes federal jobs.

Canadian Finance Minister Jim Flaherty released the budget, which calls for $5.2 billion in spending cuts and trims 19,000 public service jobs through the next three years, CTV News reported.

Speaking to reporters who were in lockup previewing the budget, Flaherty said the Conservatives' goal remains to eliminate a $33 billion deficit by 2014 by stimulating job creation and cutting regulatory hurdles to selling the country's gas, oil and mining resources, particularly to Asian markets.

"The booming economies of the Asia-Pacific region are a huge and increasing source of demand, but Canada is not the only country to which they can turn. If we fail to act now, this historic window of opportunity will close," Flaherty said.

The budget forecast a $3.4 billion surplus by 2016.

As for departmental cuts, defense took a 7.4 percent annual cut of $326 million, and Flaherty's own finance department was trimmed by 16.8 percent, CTV said. All federal departments were scaled back an average of 5-10 percent.

The budget confirmed hints the government had been issuing that the age for retirement pension eligibility would be raised from 65 to 67. However, it won't affect anyone born before 1958 and the change will be phased in between 2023 and 2029, the budget said.

Also, Canada will stop manufacturing pennies by the fall of 2012. The coins cost the mint 1.6 cents each to manufacture and distribute and their elimination is forecast to save the government $11 million per year.

The government announced a $378 million cut in foreign aid spending and said it would sell several undisclosed foreign official residences to save $80 million, CTV said.