The Harper government's decision last year to write off every penny
of the auto aid and thus build it all into last year's deficit calculation (which I questioned at the time as curious and even misleading) has already been proven wrong. Since the money was already «written off» by Ottawa as a loss (on grounds that they had little confidence it would be repaid — contradicting their own assurances at the same time that it was an «investment,» not a bail - out), any repayment will come as a gain that can be recorded in the budget on the revenue side. Jim Flaherty has learned from past Finance Ministers (especially Paul Martin) that it's always
politically better to make the budget
situation look
worse than it is (even when the bottom has fallen out
of the balance), thus positioning yourself to triumphantly announce «surprising good news» (due, no doubt, to «careful fiscal management») down the road. The auto package could thus generate as much as $ 10 billion in «surprising good news» for Ottawa in the years to come (depending on the ultimate worth
of the public equity share).