From Canada.com, June 22: Stakeholders cry foul as feds cut funding for emergency preparedness
Looks like some serious butting cutting in Canada has gone way past the fat and into the quick. It is a sad day indeed when education and training are cut from the Canadian budget. I sure hope the EM folks get to come to the U.S. and compensate for that shortsighted action.
Among the cuts in the omnibus budget bill, the government quietly cancelled the Joint Emergency Preparedness Program (JEPP) established in 1980 and ceased operations at the Canadian Emergency Management College which has offered training to emergency responders since 1954. The cuts were billed as a deficit reduction measure.
How is this for reasoning:
Public Safety Minister Vic Toews’ press secretary Julie Carmichael further noted “the original objectives of this program — namely to enhance local emergency preparedness and response capacity — have been met.”
Unbelievable! No need for EM education and training to continue, since we did that. Might as well abolish public schools, if that line of thinking prevails!
Recovery Diva 
This is a serious concearn as the changing climate and global warming are making natural disasters more prevalent, this is not the area to be cutting costs, rather investing more resources.
It is a worrisome trend. I guess the Canadians are counting on mutual aid from the US in case something major happens.
Claire
A disturbing trend, in line with other deep cuts the Conservative Party of Canada is promoting. For FY12, 4-8 billion is being slashed from social and economic programs, while Conservatives continue phasing in corporate income tax cuts, at a cost of up to $6 billion in foregone revenue.
Indeed it is a disturbing trend. Especially, as we saw in these past few days, temperature records breaking in sourthern Ontario and Quebec.