Fall Economic Statement Fiasco

The 2024 Fall Economic Statement is a total fiasco. The Liberal government is spiraling out of control at the worst possible time. The former Finance Minister’s commitment to limit the deficit to $40 billion has failed, resulting in a staggering $62 billion deficit, 55% beyond her self-imposed cap.

This unprecedented deficit is a direct result of unrestrained and irresponsible spending pushed by the Prime Minister. It will inevitably result in higher taxes not just for our generation, but for generations to come for many decades as Canada has to cover the annual costs of servicing that debt, along with paying it down over time.

It will also constrain future government’s ability to deal with the unexpected, such as another pandemic, a war or unrest, or an environmental disaster.

The Blueprint Podcast

The final days of the fall session on Parliament Hill were eventful. Just hours before Chrystia Freeland was set to release a Fall Economic Statement, the Deputy Prime Minister and Finance Minister declared she had lost confidence in the Prime Minister.

The session closed out on December 20 with Liberals in full panic mode – Ministers (plural) resigning or not running again, eight new Ministers you likely haven’t heard from before (and just one person in Cabinet from the three Prairie provinces), dozens of Caucus members saying they no longer support their Leader, and even NDP Leader Jagmeet Singh (finally) saying he would vote no-confidence — sometime in the unspecified future.

The drama overshadowed the Fall Economic Statement – a devastating document showing the Minister (yes, Ms. Freeland approved it before resigning) blew past her own self-imposed deficit target of $40 billion by 55% (to $61.9 billion). That under-performance alone is enough for a resignation!

But there are also billions in inflationary new spending, bringing Canada’s debt to $1.24 Trillion and our interest payments on debt to $53.7 billion this year!

I joined my colleague MP Jamie Schmale on “The Blueprint” to unpack all of this.

It’s 21 minutes long but I hope you’ll find time over the holiday to watch. What is going on in Ottawa is unprecedented in so many ways, and will affect us all directly.

Related material

Consult the 2024 Fall Economic Statement documents