AT THE END of January, Canada’s Parliament will reconvene and the federal government will introduce a new budget.
Everyone expects this budget to represent a change in course with a plan to stimulate the economy through tax cuts, infrastructure spending and deficit financing. This represents the new consensus strategy in the world’s largest economies but it fails to explain what moral values will guide the new plan.
We are in the middle of a systemic failure in global financial markets. Over the last 30 years, these markets have been deregulated by governments that worshipped the cult of efficiency and saluted the flag of freedom.
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This political shift, known as neo-liberalism, has allowed global markets to be manipulated in favour of the short-term interests of the wealthiest and most powerful among us.
By all means, let us change course, and do so dramatically, but in which direction?
The goal of the consensus strategy seems to be the resuscitation of the same pattern of unsustainable consumption that recently collapsed.
We have already heard some Canadian political leaders say their anti-poverty initiatives may have to be delayed as if social and ecological justice initiatives were luxuries we cannot afford in these distressed economic times.
Are there any moral values guiding public policy in response to the economic crisis?
For more than 30 years, the Christian churches have been developing a series of ethical principles that have come to be known as principles of ecojustice.
These principles are not exclusively Christian. They have developed in other religious traditions as well as through the United Nations. The ecojustice principles involve attention to solidarity, sustainability, sufficiency and equity.
Solidarity
This involves a commitment not to abandon others. Using the principle of solidarity as a guide to economic and political restructuring means strengthening our social safety net with a national social housing initiative and living wage provisions.
Sustainability
This requires us to adopt habits of living and working that enable all life to flourish. It involves using ecologically and socially appropriate technology.
Where this technology is new, it will require new investments organized so everyone can benefit. Our carbon based economy is clearly unsustainable. The principle of sustainability is key to the ethical reorientation of our economy and society.
Sufficiency
This requires a standard of organized sharing, which requires basic floors and definite ceilings for equitable consumption.
The scandal of child poverty in Canada is an example of the absence of this basic floor for consumption. The outrageous escalation of executive compensation in recent years is an example of the absence of any meaningful ceiling. If we enacted the principle of sufficiency, we could eliminate poverty and redress imbalance.
Equity
This refers to fairness in decision making as well as in outcomes. It requires socially just participation in decisions about how to obtain sustenance and manage community life. It calls for a focus on those who have been marginalized in decision-making and power sharing.
A political crisis has forced pre-budget consultation with opposition political parties. What would it take to enact the equity principle by having pre-budget consultations with those living in poverty, women, indigenous people and racial minorities?
Christopher Lind has published widely in the area of ethics and economics. He is a Senior Fellow at Massey College, University of Toronto.
