Budget Makes Life Better for South Shore Families

NOTE:A social media version of this release with a video clip is available at http://gov.ns.ca/news/smr/2011-04-05-Budget-2011/ . Photos and audio clips will be added soon.

Better health care for seniors in nursing homes and improving area roads and schools are some of the highlights for the South Shore in the provincial budget today, April 5th.

"This budget invests in health care, growing the economy, helping people make ends meet, all while ensuring government lives within its means," said Graham Steele, Minister of Finance. "We still have a difficult financial situation to address, but this budget shows that we are on target to balance in 2013, as promised."

Highlights for Lunenburg and Queens counties in today's budget include:

• hiring a nurse practitioner to visit nursing homes in South Shore Health Authority and care for seniors where they live, saving them the stress and discomfort of a trip to hospital
• continuing the $14.8-million restoration of the iconic Bluenose II by the Lunenburg Shipyard Alliance
• new nursing home beds for New Germany
• helping Lunenburg and Queens entrepreneurs by reducing the small business tax to four per cent from 4.5 per cent, the second consecutive year it has declined
• funding for new schools, including South Queens Junior High School in Liverpool and Bluenose Academy in Lunenburg
• continued and stable funding support for South Shore Public Libraries
• repaving a portion of Highway 103 in Queens County and other road upgrade and paving projects
• continued and stable funding support for local museums, such as Ross Farm and Fisheries Museum of the Atlantic

Total revenues for 2011-12, including net income from government business enterprises, are estimated at $8.5 billion, a decrease of $133 million over the 2010-11 estimates.

The 2011 budget projects a deficit of $389.6 million. This is in line with the $370-million deficit anticipated in the province's four-year fiscal plan.

Total expenses for fiscal 2011-12 are budgeted at $9.3 billion, up $323.0 million from 2010-11, entirely because of reinstating university funding.

Today's budget also includes:

• investing $42.5 million to help make post-secondary education more affordable
• opening at least four new Collaborative Emergency Centres this year
• providing tax breaks, such as an increase in the basic personal amount by $250
• reducing departmental spending by $170 million
• investing $28 million to improve business productivity
• providing $7.9 million to low-income families to help make ends meet.

For more information on the 2011-12 provincial budget, visit www.gov.ns.ca