Budget Officer Says He Expects Ramped-Up Defence Spending to Deepen Deficit

Budget Officer Says He Expects Ramped-Up Defence Spending to Deepen Deficit
Parliamentary Budget Officer Yves Giroux waits to appear at the Standing Committee on Natural Resources on Parliament Hill in Ottawa on Nov. 18, 2024. The Canadian Press/Adrian Wyld
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The parliamentary budget officer said Thursday he expects the federal government’s deficit will balloon this year thanks to ramped-up defence spending—but without a spring budget or more clarity from Ottawa, he can’t say for sure.

Yves Giroux, the government’s fiscal watchdog, issued a new economic and fiscal update Thursday that omits the usual deficit projections for future years.