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Proclaiming your government ‘fiscally responsible’ does not make it so

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From the Fraser Institute

By Jake Fuss and Grady Munro

The government planned to spend $478.6 billion in 2024/25 and run a deficit of $27.8 billion. Its latest forecast, however, shows a larger deficit of $38.4 billion despite revenues being $32.6 billion higher than anticipated.

The Trudeau government will table its next federal budget on April 16. Before and after budget day, Canadians should be wary of carefully crafted and overly positive government rhetoric, which may bear little resemblance to the actual state of Ottawa’s finances and the government’s fiscal track record.

For example, federal Finance Minister Chrystia Freeland recently said the government plans “to invest in Canadians… in a fiscally responsible way.” At first glance, these comments seem reasonable. But consider the Trudeau government’s record on spending, deficits and debt over the last nine years.

Since taking office in 2015, the Trudeau government has demonstrated a proclivity to spend and borrow at nearly every turn. From 2018 to 2022, the Trudeau government recorded the five highest levels of federal spending per person (excluding debt interest costs) in Canadian history (inflation-adjusted). Recent projections from the government suggest it will possess the eight highest levels of per-person spending by the end of its current term next fall.

This repeated preference to turn on the spending taps has resulted in nine consecutive budget deficits, with federal debt reaching $2.0 trillion at the end of March 2024. Rapid debt accumulation means each Canadian was responsible for paying $1,160 in federal debt interest costs in 2023/24 alone and the government will likely need to raise taxes in the future.

The government also plans to continue running larger deficits than it did before COVID and borrow nearly $500 billion more by 2028/29.

To make matters worse, we can’t put much stock in their fiscal plans, as spending and deficits are almost always higher than government forecasts. Two years ago, for example, the government planned to spend $478.6 billion in 2024/25 and run a deficit of $27.8 billion. Its latest forecast, however, shows a larger deficit of $38.4 billion despite revenues being $32.6 billion higher than anticipated. A failure to restrain spending means the government now expects total spending to be $521.8 billion in 2024/25.

None of this points to any semblance of fiscal responsibility.

Ontario’s Finance Minister Peter Bethlenfalvy has made similar erroneous claims. When tabling that province’s budget last month, he said his fiscal plan, which includes a $9.8 billion deficit in 2024/25 and $59.7 billion in debt over three years, was a “prudent, responsible approach.”

Despite paying lip service to their strong stewardship of government finances, Minister Bethlenfalvy and Premier Doug Ford rarely waste an opportunity to increase spending and burden Ontarians with more debt. From 2017/18 to 2024/25, provincial revenues will have increased by a projected 36.5 per cent, yet the Ford government has more than wiped out these gains by increasing program spending by nearly 41.0 per cent over the same timeframe.

Moreover, Ontario’s per-person inflation-adjusted spending is higher now than it ever was during Kathleen Wynne’s tenure as premier. Due to the Ford government’s decision to post deficits in five of six years, in conjunction with significant spending on infrastructure, provincial debt has increased by close to $92.0 billion since 2017/18.

None of these facts point to a “prudent, responsible approach” to finances at Queen’s Park.

The current governments in both Toronto and Ottawa have remarkably poor track records with spending and debt. Proclaiming yourself to be fiscally responsible does not make it so. It’s time for finance ministers to stop playing word tricks and be honest about their own mismanagement.

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Business

Opposition leader Poilievre calling for end of prorogation to deal with Trump’s tariffs

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From Conservative Party Communications

The Hon. Pierre Poilievre, Leader of the Conservative Party of Canada and the Official Opposition, released the following statement on the threat of tariffs from the US:

“Canada is facing a critical challenge. On February 1st we are facing the risk of unjustified 25% tariffs by our largest trading partner that would have damaging consequences across our country. Our American counterparts say they want to stop the illegal flow of drugs and other criminal activity at our border. The Liberal government admits their weak border is a problem. That is why they announced a multibillion-dollar border plan—a plan they cannot fund because they shut down Parliament, preventing MPs and Senators from authorizing the funds.

“We also need retaliatory tariffs, something that requires urgent Parliamentary consideration.

“Yet, Liberals have shut Parliament in the middle of this crisis. Canada has never been so weak, and things have never been so out of control. Liberals are putting themselves and their leadership politics ahead of the country. Freeland and Carney are fighting for power rather than fighting for Canada.

“Common Sense Conservatives are calling for Trudeau to reopen Parliament now to pass new border controls, agree on trade retaliation and prepare a plan to rescue Canada’s weak economy.

“The Prime Minister has the power to ask the Governor General to cut short prorogation and get our Parliament working.

“Open Parliament. Take back control. Put Canada First.”

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Carbon Tax

Carbon tax tripping up Liberal leadership hopefuls

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The Liberals and progressives everywhere were so close.  At the height of their influence, no one, certainly anywhere in the English speaking world could make this claim: “Climate change IS NOT an existential threat to planet earth.” Those who did were immediately sidelined, ostracized by their cohorts, dismissed by corporate media and social media behemoths. Sure the battle still rages, but only in their information world where you still see phrases like “climate change denialist”.

You see their information world has not yet realized something new has happened.  History writers will say Elon Musk stopped the progressives in their tracks by buying Twitter, releasing the Twitter files and eventually with Donald Trump, swinging the information world in the direction of X.  If you have doubts just look at this picture.  While the Twitter files reveal the new information world was under the, let’s say ‘secret influence’ of the White House, this photo shows those same tech power brokers are publicly, and happily celebrating the man they worked secretly to bring down.  Or at least they’re not ashamed to publicly text their friends about it. The fact they’re not hiding probably reveals their eager support.

Sometimes we find it’s the people we look down our noses at who make all the difference.  Like those overweight beer-guzzling hunter types who wear the red hats. (No not the Roman Cardinals, but the Appalachian trailer house occupants). These conspiracy theorists started to proclaim that the world would in fact not burn up by next weekend.  Sure many of these seemed to be the same people who claim the world is flat and their neighbor is from another planet.  But then more people stepped forward.  Not about ‘pancake Earth’, but about the existential threat of climate change.

Family members and friends scorned and ridiculed them, and many still do.  They were outraged that a regular citizen would dare to share information from a completely sane climate scientist or researcher who did not agree with the majority. They’d lose their marbles on those silly enough to cite a peer reviewed scientific paper.  IF anyone was bold enough to take the time to read an entire report from NASA or Environment Canada, well you’d certainly hear someone say “You fool! You can’t do your own research!! You’re not a scientist!!”

Fortunately, funny man podcaster Jimmy Dore has the perfect comeback for these situations.  Dore says when his own friends warned him only a Conspiracy Theorist would do his own research, he replied “You know before COVID doing your own research used to be called… reading”.  It’s really worth two minutes to check this out.  If you don’t find it funny, really funny, then I’m sorry. One day you will.

Speaking of reading, in the days before the printing press the Church and various wildly wealthy monarchs had a stranglehold on information sharing.  Those who contradicted the party line could have their heads chopped off by a guillotine bought and paid for with their meagre tax offerings, or, they could expect to be publicly shamed and eternally condemned by their local preacher.  Sure some of them probably deserved it but who am I to judge?

Then the printing press was invented. At first the Church leaders said, “Great now everyone can be educated, learn to read and even write themselves, and study the Bible on their own!”  Eventually some of those same leaders said, “THIS IS A DISASTER! Everyone can be educated, learn to read and even write themselves, and study the Bible on their own!”  After a few centuries the power structures in Europe completely changed.  The Church divided into thousands of Protestant movements and the Catholic Church forever lost the political clout it never should have appreciated.  Universities sprung up around libraries. Monarchs handed over power to early democratic governments. Books about science lead to scientific innovations. Average Joe’s eventually moved from underground mud huts to middle class condos in the sky.

Well the same thing is happening now with the internet.  Except at breakneck  speed.  What took the printing press hundreds of years to accomplish, takes the internet a few months.  The emergence and re-emergence of Trump Presidencies, revolutions against power structures, could not have been accomplished without the way we get information on the internet.

Sure there’s a lot of murky confusion as corporate media used to their powerful podiums of the printing press and cable tv are moving their content over to the new medium.  But they’re being (sorry it’s all over, they have been) overtaken by the new form of information sharing.  We’ve gone from headlines and ten second sound bites, to three hour long conversations with plenty of time for explaining and context.  That’s something cable tv just didn’t have enough bandwidth to deliver.

So what does this mean for people trying to buy 1,200 square foot condos in Canada today?

Well we get to watch the power brokers struggle to retain their grip on / over our lives.

Those running to replace the son of … Hmm. Here’s a perfect example. Depending upon where you get your information from he’s either the son of Pierre, or he has an incomprehensively uncanny and impossibly accidental resemblance to a close personal family friend.

Those running to replace Liberal Leader Justin (let’s leave the last name out until the DNA results are back) definitely believe his father is Pierre. They believe Russians are our enemies.  They think COVID vaccines saved the world. They think NATO is protecting Ukraine. And they certainly believe if we pay higher taxes in Canada we’ll save the world from the temperatures many of us pay thousands of dollars to escape to for a few days for six months of the year.

Carney, Gould, and Freeland don’t seem to realize everyday Canadians are simply done with the idea that a Carbon Tax in any form is going to save the world.  Thanks to the internet, regular folks/voters have had time to do a little reading and listen to a few long conversations about this.  Average people are understanding that CO2 makes up not 40% or 60% of the atmosphere, but .04%.  Of that .04%, less than 4% is caused by humans. Mathematically it’s silly to think that paying more for food and groceries and everything else in Rosetown, Saskatchewan or Red Deer, Alberta is going to stop, slow down, or make any difference at all to global temperatures in 20 years.

It’s ironic that it’s the modern progressive movement who are stuck in the old information age.  You’d think the slower thinking conservatives would hold on to the old ways and they’d be the ones trying to enforce restrictions on the new communication movement.  Somehow the self proclaimed forward looking progressives are the ones trying to censor.  Maybe it does make sense.  Conservatives are more likely to read their history.  They know the ones who censor are always trying to retain their failing grasp on power.  New information consumers are ready, willing, and annoyingly attempting to debate.  But there’s no debate for those who say “The science is settled.” I guess that means they’re all finished learning things.

Sorry to the Liberal Leadership hopefuls.  They haven’t heard the news.  Well actually they have and that’s the problem.  Instead of paying attention to what’s really happening, they’re dismissing everything and everyone who doesn’t appear on the cable news channels.. other than to be ridiculed that is.

I leave you with this short video from Franco Terrazzano of the Canadian Taxpayers Federation.  Franco explains how those vying for control of the PMO are tripping over their new versions of an old and failed Carbon Tax. Pity them. They don’t realize voters have moved on.

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