In her first speech since presenting the federal budget, Finance Minister Chrystia Freeland on Monday defended the proposed plan as “a responsible approach to fiscal matters.” […] which focuses on energy transition, innovation and people”, during a speech to the Board of Trade of Metropolitan Montreal (CCMM), at the Palais des Congrès.
Posted at 2:45 p.m.
The president of the CCMM, Michel Leblanc, questioned the Deputy Prime Minister about high inflation, recalling that “if governments, in their budgetary policies, spend a lot, that increases inflation and that can create pressure for the Bank of Canada to move even faster towards higher interest rates”.
“We took a responsible approach in the budget and, to highlight a number, we added 0.3% of GDP to the economy,” she replied. It is impossible to say that such a small amount will have an effect on inflation. »
According to her, international causes are responsible for this, such as “the price of oil”, “the price of agricultural products” and the effects of the pandemic on supply chains.
As for the labor shortage, Mr.me Freeland argued that solving the housing crisis could kill two birds with one stone, because “if you want to have more people, you have to build more housing”.
However, she warned that a single solution will not be able to solve this complex problem.
This article was produced with the financial support of the Meta Fellowships and The Canadian Press for News.