Budgetary Balance: A Fantasy for the Federal Government
As we saw last Thursday, several additional measures were integrated into the new federal budget. Indeed, and this is nothing new, the federal government loosens the purse strings with such ease that there is good reason to worry about the national debt—already gargantuan—of over $1.262 trillion.
Canadian taxpayers have every reason to expect their government to propose a plan to return to a balanced budget, and before 2030. Yet the projections found in this budget, which go up to 2026-2027, do not aim for budgetary balance. In other words, expecting the sound management of public finances, based on last week’s budget, is pure fantasy, since a deficit of around $8.4 billion is projected for the 2026-2027 fiscal year.
Being there for Canadians doesn’t mean piling up additional spending for new programs ad nauseum, but rather paying down the debt, both for their sake and for the sake of future generations.