The Harper government proclaimed itself Lean and Fit at an Ottawa fitness club of the same name 18 months ago. Stockwell Day, the then Treasury Board president, released the government’s 2011-12 spending plans — the Main Estimates — that suggested the Conservatives would spend $10-billion less than in the previous year.
Later that day, reporters cornered Peter Kent, the Environment Minister, about 20% cuts to climate change programs the Estimates suggested the government was planning to make.
