OTTAWA -- Monday's federal budget is expected to unleash one of the biggest assaults on the public sector in Canada's history, says a new Alternative Federal Budget (AFB) report by the Canadian Centre for Policy Alternatives (CCPA).

The report gives Canadians a sense of what to expect from the Harper government's first majority budget, telegraphing a hard shift to the right.

"Despite the government's stay-the-course rhetoric, the budget will lay the foundation for the most aggressive assault on public service delivery in Canadian history," says AFB Coordinator David Macdonald.

At long last, the federal government has decided to seriously address the housing price bubble that has increasingly concerned Canadians.

On the heels of multiple warnings from the Bank of Canada that Canadians have taken on too much household debt for comfort (we hold the dubious distinction of having the worst consumer debt to financial assets ratio among 20 OECD nations), the federal government announced three moves. It will reduce the maximum insurable amortization period from 35 years to 30 years as it scales back both home equity loans and the amount homeowners can refinance. With these changes, we are about half way back to where the CMHC lending standards stood in 2006 when the Harper government significantly loosened them.

Organized around the theme "Advancing Democracy and Social Justice in Canada: The Next 30 Years," the Canadian Centre for Policy Alternatives celebrated its 30th anniversary with a conference featuring progressive activists, thinkers and organizations on Nov. 18.

The gathering was an opportunity to mark three decades of advancing progressive ideas and to reflect on the challenges that lie ahead. After spending the day taking in presentations from a line-up of insightful speakers, here are some themes that resonated with me.