Commentary
Recently, federal Finance Minister Chrystia Freeland commented on Canada’s inflation challenges and the federal budget. Unfortunately, many of these statements were misleading, with Freeland doubling down on the Trudeau government’s approach to fiscal policy.
Responding to questions about the government’s approach to addressing inflation, Freeland repeated the claim that the latest federal budget was a “very fiscally-responsible budget.” However, this claim bears little semblance to reality.
While the projected federal deficit declines from $113.8 billion in 2021/22 to $52.8 billion in 2022/23, this is not due to prudent spending or responsible financial management. Instead, the country’s economic rebound, high oil and gas prices, and high inflation allowed Ottawa to benefit from an influx of revenue….