National Post

Canadian penny fell victim to changing times
The lowly penny, once an important unit of currency but long since reduced to providing little more than irritating pocket ballast and use in nursery-school rhymes, was declared officially redundant in the 2012 budget.

Aside from giving opposition members ample opportunity to criticize the Tory budget as “penny-wise, dollar-foolish,” the decision to eliminate the coins meant that Finance Minister Jim Flaherty could make a bedroom reference in his budget speech: “Pennies take up too much space on our dressers at home.” (Photo: Getty Images / Thinkstock)