Business
The debt silver bullet? Ending corporate welfare
From the Canadian Taxpayers Federation
By Jay Goldberg
Canadians are worried about government debt and axing corporate welfare is the closest thing to a silver bullet politicians have to solve the problem.
Canada’s politicians spent $89 billion handing out taxpayer cash to corporations in 2021, the last year for which figures are available, according to the Fraser Institute.
To get a handle on swelling government debt at both the federal and provincial levels, it’s time to put corporate welfare on the chopping block.
And those who think taxpayers don’t care about government debt are sorely mistaken.
A recent Leger poll shows 81 per cent of Ontarians are concerned about the debt dive the province has taken over the past decade.
No doubt Canadian taxpayers are just as alarmed about the doubling of Canada’s federal debt during Prime Minister Justin Trudeau’s nine years running Parliament Hill.
When an individual has a debt problem, the first step is to stop digging. The same is true of governments.
This year, just two of Canada’s 10 provinces are running balanced budgets. And Ottawa is nowhere close.
But look at the corporate welfare numbers and a path to solving Canada’s run-away government debt problem begins to emerge.
Take Ontario.
Ontario’s politicians have racked up $145 billion in new debt over the past decade, including more than $80 billion over the past six years under Premier Doug Ford.
Thanks to years of mismanagement, Ontario taxpayers will spend $13.9 billion on debt interest payments this year. That’s more than the province spends on post-secondary education.
And this year’s deficit is a whopping $9.8 billion.
Ontarians are concerned. And rightly so.
But take a quick gander at the Fraser Institute’s report and a path toward balance becomes clear.
The Ford government spent $22.1 billion in taxpayer handouts to corporations in 2021.
If this year’s handouts are even half of what they were in 2021, the Ford government could wipe out its deficit and produce a surplus by eliminating corporate welfare alone.
It’s unfair to place more and more debt at the feet of our children and grandchildren to give wealthy companies handouts.
It’s also unfair to pick winners and losers. The Ford government is taxing hardworking Ontarians, as well as small businesses, and handing billions over to wealthy corporations that don’t need taxpayer help.
Over the past few years, the Ford government has teamed up with the Trudeau Liberals to give billions to wealthy companies like Honda, Volkswagen, the Ford Motor Company, Stellantis, and many others.
Each year, Ottawa and Queen’s Park ran big deficits while handing out taxpayer cash to wealthy companies like candy. In many cases, taxpayers are paying millions of dollars for every job created.
Corporate welfare is fueling government debt. And it’s time for it to stop.
Not only is corporate welfare insanely costly, but it simply doesn’t work.
Between 2011 and 2021, the Ontario government spent $100 billion on corporate welfare. Yet inflation-adjusted economic growth in Ontario was below one per cent, on average, during that decade.
If handing out billions to create jobs and grow the economy worked, surely, we’d have the evidence by now.
Queen’s Park isn’t the only place where the budget could be turned around if corporate welfare were a thing of the past.
The Trudeau government also spent $47 billion on corporate welfare in 2021, which roughly equates to its budget deficit this year.
If 2024 corporate welfare numbers are in line with 2021, the Trudeau government could balance its budget in one fell swoop.
Taxpayers are rightly concerned about growing government debt across the country. Ending handouts to wealthy companies is an obvious solution to the debt binge.
After all, you cannot borrow and subsidize your way to prosperity.
Quick Hit:
President Trump on Thursday confirmed a sweeping new 35% tariff on Canadian imports starting August 1, citing Canada’s failure to curb fentanyl trafficking and retaliatory trade actions.
Key Details:
- In a letter to Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney, Trump said the new 35% levy is in response to Canada’s “financial retaliation” and its inability to stop fentanyl from reaching the U.S.
- Trump emphasized that Canadian businesses that relocate manufacturing to the U.S. will be exempt and promised expedited approvals for such moves.
- The administration has already notified 23 countries of impending tariffs following the expiration of a 90-day negotiation window under Trump’s “Liberation Day” trade policy.
Diving Deeper:
President Trump escalated his tariff strategy on Thursday, formally announcing a 35% duty on all Canadian imports effective August 1. The move follows what Trump described as a breakdown in trade cooperation and a failure by Canada to address its role in the U.S. fentanyl crisis.
“It is a Great Honor for me to send you this letter in that it demonstrates the strength and commitment of our Trading Relationship,” Trump wrote to Prime Minister Mark Carney. He added that the tariff response comes after Canada “financially retaliated” against the U.S. rather than working to resolve the flow of fentanyl across the northern border.
Trump’s letter made clear the tariff will apply broadly, separate from any existing sector-specific levies, and included a warning that “goods transshipped to evade this higher Tariff will be subject to that higher Tariff.” The president also hinted that further retaliation from Canada could push rates even higher.
However, Trump left the door open for possible revisions. “If Canada works with me to stop the flow of Fentanyl, we will, perhaps, consider an adjustment to this letter,” he said, adding that tariffs “may be modified, upward or downward, depending on our relationship.”
Canadian companies that move operations to the U.S. would be exempt, Trump said, noting his administration “will do everything possible to get approvals quickly, professionally, and routinely — In other words, in a matter of weeks.”
The U.S. traded over $762 billion in goods with Canada in 2024, with a trade deficit of $63.3 billion, a figure Trump called a “major threat” to both the economy and national security.
Speaking with NBC News on Thursday, Trump suggested even broader tariff hikes are coming, floating the idea of a 15% or 20% blanket rate on all imports. “We’re just going to say all of the remaining countries are going to pay,” he told Meet the Press moderator Kristen Welker, adding that “the tariffs have been very well-received” and noting that the stock market had hit new highs that day.
The Canadian announcement is part of a broader global tariff rollout. In recent days, Trump has notified at least 23 countries of new levies and revealed a separate 50% tariff on copper imports.
“Not everybody has to get a letter,” Trump said when asked if other leaders would be formally notified. “You know that. We’re just setting our tariffs.”
From LifeSiteNews
By Dan Frieth
In his letter dated July 9, 2025, addressed to President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva, Trump ties new U.S. trade measures directly to Brazilian censorship.
U.S. President Donald Trump has launched a fierce rebuke of Brazil’s moves to silence American-run social media platforms, particularly Rumble and X.
In his letter dated July 9, 2025, addressed to President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva, Trump ties new U.S. trade measures directly to Brazilian censorship.
He calls attention to “SECRET and UNLAWFUL Censorship Orders to U.S. Social Media platforms,” pointing out that Brazil’s Supreme Court has been “threatening them with Millions of Dollars in Fines and Eviction from the Brazilian Social Media market.”
Trump warns that these actions are “due in part to Brazil’s insidious attacks on Free Elections, and the fundamental Free Speech Rights of Americans,” and states: “starting on August 1, 2025, we will charge Brazil a Tariff of 50% on any and all Brazilian products sent into the United States, separate from all Sectoral Tariffs.” He also adds that “Goods transshipped to evade this 50% Tariff will be subject to that higher Tariff.”
Brazil’s crackdown has targeted Rumble after it refused to comply with orders to block the account of Allan dos Santos, a Brazilian streamer living in the United States.
On February 21, 2025, Justice Alexandre de Moraes ordered Rumble’s suspension for non‑compliance, saying it failed “to comply with court orders.”
Earlier, from August to October 2024, Moraes had similarly ordered a nationwide block on X.
The court directed ISPs to suspend access and imposed fines after the platform refused to designate a legal representative and remove certain accounts.
Elon Musk responded: “Free speech is the bedrock of democracy and an unelected pseudo‑judge in Brazil is destroying it for political purposes.”
By linking censorship actions, particularly those targeting Rumble and X, to U.S. trade policy, Trump’s letter asserts that Brazil’s judiciary has moved into the arena of foreign policy and economic consequences.
The tariffs, he makes clear, are meant, at least in part, as a response to Brazil’s suppression of American free speech.
Trump’s decision to impose tariffs on Brazil for censoring American platforms may also serve as a clear signal to the European Union, which is advancing similar regulatory efforts under the guise of “disinformation” and “online safety.”
With the EU’s Digital Services Act and proposed “hate speech” legislation expanding government authority over content moderation, American companies face mounting pressure to comply with vague and sweeping takedown demands.
By framing censorship as a violation of U.S. free speech rights and linking it to trade consequences, Trump is effectively warning that any foreign attempt to suppress American voices or platforms could trigger similar economic retaliation.
Reprinted with permission from Reclaim The Net.
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