Hours before tabling his much-anticipated federal budget, Finance Minister François-Philippe Champagne said Canadians will be reassured by his government’s fiscal plan.
Champagne said there’s a “lot of uncertainty” for Canadian families and workers amid changing economic conditions but overall he said they will “feel good tonight” about the Liberals’ budget.
“People will go to bed and say, ‘we’re going to be okay,’” said the minister after the cabinet meeting on Nov. 4. “Canada is a strong country. We have strong foundation, strong industry. This budget will really bring us forward as a nation, empower people.”
Champagne has called the first budget of the new Liberal government “pivotal,” saying it will bring rigour in spending while launching “generational investments.”
The minority Liberals will need to find a few extra votes from other parties to pass the budget in what will be a confidence motion in the coming days. An election could be triggered if the budget motion fails.
Some opposition MPs could also choose to abstain from voting to avoid appearing like they’re supporting the government, but the end result could be the same if it leads to the budget being adopted.
Champagne’s budget is expected to attempt to balance both investment and austerity. The minister asked his colleagues earlier this year to find incremental savings in their departments over the next few years.
“The colleagues in the country understood we needed to find savings,” said Champagne when asked by reporters about budget cuts.
Champagne said the government will be “very compassionate” in how it pursues government efficiency, including by using “normal attrition” to bring the public service back to a “more sustainable level” and in keeping “key services that are dear to Canadians.”
“I think Canadians have been tightening their belt for quite some time and if you want to be credible when you’re saying you’re going to make generational investments, you also have to have the discipline to look at how you can make government more efficient,” he said.
Tory Leader Pierre Poilievre has called on the Liberals to table an “affordable” budget below the deficit projection of $42 billion for fiscal year 2025-26 in Ottawa’s last Fall Economic Statement.
“I ask Canadians: Are you better off than you were 10 years ago, when Liberals came into office promising that deficits would lead to investment? What have you seen?” Poilievre said on Nov. 2.
“You’ve seen your grocery prices rise. Your kids can’t afford a place to live. More and more people are living homeless.”
